Low carbon journeys and no peak fares for Reston commuters as station celebrates its first anniversary
TransPennine Express (TPE) is marking one year since the re-opening of Reston station with plans for low carbon journeys and a trial removal of peak time fares as part of new agreement with Transport Scotland to continue operating services that call at Reston for another year.
The agreement, signed last week, will see TPE call seven times a day Mondays to Saturdays at Reston with six calls in each direction on Sundays until 1 June 2024. Under that agreement, TPE will work with rail industry partners to enable two services a day in each direction that have to currently operate with diesel power to become fully electric, thereby reducing carbon emissions further.
TPE will also work with Transport Scotland to introduce a trial removal of TPE-only peak time fares for calls on this service within Scotland (Edinburgh, Dunbar and Reston, as well as East Linton once opened).
More than 15,000 TPE customer journeys have been made to or from the station since it opened on 23 May last year – a remarkable figure considering the village had no direct rail link for the previous 50 years.
And TPE has been the main driver of success at the East Berwickshire station with 90 per cent of all journeys (16,800) completed on the train operator’s Nova 1 fleet.
Matthew Golton, Managing Director at TransPennine Express, said: “We are honoured to have been asked to continue calling services at Reston on behalf of Transport Scotland. In the past 12 months have delivered more than 15,000 journeys to or from the station in the first year and our proud of the links we provide between England and Scotland. This is a foundation to enable far more low carbon journeys to be made to and from Reston in coming the year, aided with the trial removal of our peak time fares.”
“Our aim for Reston was to re-connect by rail the local community with those that surround it, from Northumberland up to Edinburgh, and to open new journey opportunities for people in the area. I’m delighted we have achieved this feat and that thousands of journeys have been made using our services.”
Kevin Stewart, Minister for Transport said: “Efficient and effective rail services, which encourage people to choose to travel locally and further afield by train, for work, training, education, leisure and social activities, are vital to Scotland’s future. I am delighted to mark one year since the completion and opening of our significant £20 million investment in Reston station. I know that communities in and around Reston have directly benefitted from the return of rail services for the first time in more than half a century and will continue to benefit for years to come.”
On Monday 23 May 2022, TPE launched the specially named St Abb’s Head Nova 1 to mark the opening of Reston station and Eileen Anderson, 85, a local resident who worked in the ticket office of Reston Station in 1962 was there to wave the train off on its maiden journey.
In the following 12 months, Eileen – along with many local people – has taken full advantage of TPE’s trains.