Hertfordshire villages are set to get a direct train from London for the first time in decades

Hertfordshire is a popular place for commuters heading into the capital.

There is a direct train to London from almost all the major towns in the county, making it the perfect place to live for people who travel regularly into the capital.

Yet Herts is also home to some tiny and remote villages. There are beautiful spots in the countryside, which are wonderful when you are looking for some peace and quiet but can make life a little tricky when it comes to transport links.

This month, six small stations in Herts will see their first regular direct passenger train from London in more than 30 years, MyLondon reports.

Read more: Get the latest transport news from Hertfordshire

A new National Rail timetable comes into effect every December, introduced for the operational convenience of the railway service. The next timetable will arrive on December 13.

Every evening of each weekday, a train will run to a number of different spots in Hertfordshire – including to some more remote areas.

The train will leave Euston at 9.10pm and call at Watford Junction (9.29pm), Watford North (9.32pm), Garston (9.36pm), Bricket Wood (9.39pm), How Wood (9.42pm), Park Street (9.43pm) and St Albans Abbey (9.47pm).

There is no journey in the other direction, so people travelling from some of these spots in Hertfordshire will still need to change at Watford Junction if they are looking to get to central London.

The stations along this single track line are some of the least used stations in the county, with How Wood being last year’s quietest with just 4,360 passengers last year.

The populations of Bricket Wood, How Wood and Park Street are no more than 7,000 each.

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How Wood and Park Street are villages on the outskirts of St Albans, surrounded by green belt land and an idyllic woodland perfect for walking.

Meanwhile, Bricket Wood is home to the UK’s oldest naturist site, Spielplatz (‘playground’ in German), where there is a community of 65 people who happily enjoy life in the nude.

The line will also connect two of Herts’ largest commuter towns, Watford and St Albans. Until now, train links between the two towns have been limited.

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Lawrence Bowman, LNR customer experience director, said: “Over recent months we have been delighted to welcome more customers back to the railway following the easing of coronavirus restrictions.

“In response to customer feedback and our passenger numbers, now is the right time to introduce an additional fast train between Northampton and London on weekdays.

“This means departure times for many of our services will change which is why we are urging our customers to check their journeys carefully.”

It will be the only journey which allows passengers to travel over a short bit of 25mph track between Watford South Junction on the West Coast Main Line and the line to St Albans Abbey which is usually out of bounds.

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https://www.hertfordshiremercury.co.uk/news/hertfordshire-news/hertfordshire-villages-direct-train-london-6304079

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