A NEW morning rail service from York to Harrogate will be launched on Sunday.

The service which currently starts at Knaresborough will instead begin at York at 11.14am, providing an earlier Sunday morning service.

There will also be an earlier service from Harrogate to York at 10.48am, giving leisure travellers the opportunity to spend more time in both popular cities on a Sunday.

Richard Allan, area director for Northern Rail, said: “This is the latest improvement to services on the Harrogate line, following a new Saturday evening train from York and more seats and services on Sundays. Working with and listening to the local communities we serve helps us deliver passenger friendly improvements such as these and plan for future investment.”

Andrew Jones, the MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, said: “The increasing popularity of the Harrogate line is driving these changes to the Sunday timetable.

“It is good to see the growth of passengers being responded to so positively by Northern Rail with this new service. And a new service will encourage more people to use our railway.”