MORE trains will run between Kemble and London after First Great Western was re-awarded the franchise for rail services in the South West until 2019.

In May 2017, a new 4.42pm service from Paddington to Cheltenham – which includes Kemble – will start to run, with a return 7.34pm Cheltenham to Paddington service, which will extend the current operating times by an hour.

A timetable change in December 2018 will see the service frequency from London to Cheltenham doubled off-peak, with hourly services.

Journey times between London and Cheltenham will be cut by 12 minutes, typically lasting two hours.

The new timetable will see extended hours of operation for intercity services, with the first train to London leaving Cheltenham two hours earlier than now, at 5.30am, while the last train back to London will leave Cheltenham at 9.30pm.

Hitachi's Intercity Express Trains will be brought into the Cotswolds from summer 2017, increasing the speed of services.

This follows the news that FGW has submitted plans to create an additional 330 parking spaces next to Kemble station, which are expected to be in place by 2016.

Cotswold MP Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said: “Following a long campaign which I led in conjunction with the Wilts and Glos Standard, we have at long last the imminent prospect of faster, and more frequent, train services from Kemble, with new and improved rolling stock incorporating WI-FI.

"We also have the announcement that Kemble car park is likely to have an additional 330 spaces, which will please villagers and commuters alike.

"All of this has been made possible by the Government’s funding of £45 million for the redoubling of the Kemble to Swindon line, and should provide a real boost for rail users.”