Caledonian Sleeper trains will begin stopping at Birmingham International from Thursday night, marking the most significant network change to the Anglo-Scottish overnight service in more than three decades. The new route provides direct connections between the West Midlands and Aberdeen, Fort William, and Inverness in the Scottish Highlands.
Northbound trains depart Birmingham International at 10.42pm on weeknights and 10.35pm on Sundays. After splitting into three sections at Edinburgh, the services arrive in Aberdeen at 7.50am, Inverness at 8.45am, and Fort William at 10am. Southbound trains reach Birmingham International at 6.20am.
Boosting Cross-Border Travel
Graham Kelly, managing director of Caledonian Sleeper, described the expansion as a significant milestone. «This historic timetable update marks a significant milestone in our mission to further boost sustainable cross-border travel options,» he said.
Kelly highlighted the appeal for Birmingham residents traveling to Scotland. «Birmingham is the latest city set to benefit from our high-quality overnight train service as residents will be able to drift off in the West Midlands in their own private room and wake up to beautiful views of the Scottish Highlands,» he said.
The route also targets Scottish leisure tourists. «Similarly, we believe our new route will be incredibly popular with leisure tourists from Scotland given the wide range of sights and attractions in Birmingham and across the West Midlands to be discovered,» Kelly said.
The service addresses what Caledonian Sleeper called transport links that are «underserved by existing transport options» between the regions. Passengers at Birmingham International cannot leave northbound trains or board southbound trains at the station.
The separate Lowlander service connecting London with Edinburgh and Glasgow will not stop at Birmingham International.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
