CHANGES to the rail timetable will be put into place next month amidst objections.

Over the past few months the Chester Shrewsbury Rail Partnership has engaged with Transport for Wales over their proposed new timetable for December 2019.

A spokesman for the partnership said: “Despite numerous requests for sight of their proposals no consultation was undertaken.

“It is with great disappointment that we find that our hourly service introduced in 2005 under the Arriva Trains Wales franchise is being compromised to the detriment of passengers using those services.

“We have lobbied and campaigned through an on-line petition and the Shrewsbury Chester Rail Users Association conducted a survey of passengers affected which clearly showed the hardship these changes would cause.”

Chair of the partnership Cllr David Bithell also wrote to the Department for Transport, highlighting the ‘breach of the Train Service Requirement’ and the impact the loss of services and changes to the service pattern will have to passengers in England and Wales.

The changes from December 15 will include:

• The 09:25 service from Shrewsbury north along this line will no longer run

• An express service from Cardiff to Holyhead will depart Shrewsbury at 09:01 but not stop at Gobowen, Chirk or Ruabon and will depart Wrexham General at 09:30

• The next service north from Wrexham will be over 90 minutes later at 11.03

• Services north from Gobowen, Chirk and Ruabon will be two hourly

• In the afternoon the previous 14.20 Chester train south will not run.

• The 14.20 has been re-timed and there will be a departure from Chester at 13.16 and 13.38 and stop at all stations, Wrexham, Ruabon Chirk and Gobowen.

• However, the next service south from Chester will not be until 15.36 almost two hours later giving a similar wait at Wrexham, Ruabon, Chirk and Gobowen.

• Passengers from Manchester, Crewe, Leeds, London and Liverpool arriving in Chester after 13.38 and expecting to make connection at Chester for this line may need to wait up to nearly two hours until 15.36 for their next train.

The spokesman for the partnership added: " It has been confirmed that the removal of this service constitutes a reduction in the number of services beneath those set out in the operator's Train Service Requirement which is an important part of the rail devolution agreement between the Department for Transport and Transport for Wales.

"This affects not only passengers along the line of route but also those coming north from Shrewsbury from Aberystwyth, Birmingham and the West Midlands who would have expected a connection from their incoming trains."