A ticket to Gatwick

So, Tunbridge Wells Borough Council would like to see through trains between Tunbridge Wells and Gatwick re-instated. But who will pay for them? The previous service was not used much and I doubt if a new service would be viable.

The problem with trains to airports is that they require lots of luggage space, hence the special carriages on services from Paddington to Heathrow and Victoria to Gatwick.

I hope the Council turns its attention to the problem of public transport to Brighton. The bus takes two hours as does each of the three rail routes.

Tunbridge Wells to Brighton involves a change at St Leonards and sometimes a further change at Lewes. You can travel via London Bridge but that costs more. The third route is via Tonbridge (change), Redhill (change) and Gatwick (change). Between Tonbridge and Redhill the service is hourly. Amazingly, there is no through service between Redhill and Brighton.

From Redhill there is a service to Reading via Guildford. When I visit Oxford I would prefer to travel via Redhill to Reading and avoid London. Likewise I would prefer to travel via Redhill and Guildford to reach Portsmouth. What I would like is a fast service from Ashford to Reading calling at Tonbridge, Redhill and Guildford and also Paddock Wood, Reigate and Dorking.