Passengers using the Charing Cross service to Hastings since December have discovered that the connection at Hastings for a Marsh Link train is now much longer. This is because the London to Hastings services operated by South Eastern have been re timed which has led to the following situation.
At the timetable change in June 2024, most of the Southeastern trains arriving from Charing Cross at Hastings no longer connect with eastbound Marshlink trains. Southeastern trains arrive at Hastings at XX.29 and XX.49 and the hourly Marshlink trains depart from Hastings at XX.25, which means a wait of 40 minutes or 56 minutes. Southeastern are being asked to restore the connections which were lost in June last year.
It is bad enough that the service is only hourly but to arrive from London to discover that the connecting train to Rye has left four minutes earlier and involves a wait of 56 minutes for the next one is totally unsatisfactory. This effects passengers from all connecting stations between London and Hastings including Tunbridge Wells and Battle. Up until December I could hop off at St Leonards and wait on the platform for five minutes for the Ashford service, I did then not realise how lucky I was!
