GWR has announced it will trial overnight services between Reading and the airport along the North Downs Line.
This, it said, will improve rail access to the airport from communities along the line itself, the wider Thames Valley, and the rest of the GWR network including the west of England and south Wales.
The trial will involve GWR running overnight services on Friday and Sunday nights from June 6 until September 11,2026.
Services will run approximately every two hours and will call at Reading, Wokingham, Guildford, Dorking Deepdene, Reigate, Redhill and Gatwick Airport.
Currently GWR services are only able to operate from 4:30am until 11:30pm, which means that mpre than 20% of Gatwick’s customers cannot use rail services from the Thames Valley.
These new services offer connections to early morning departures and late-night arrivals for flights from major airlines including easyJet, Jet2 and British Airways.
Planned to operate throughout the summer, the services will provide vital connectivity not only to airline passengers but also to shift workers along the route.
This trial allows GWR to test demand for extended operating hours to Gatwick, and gather real-world data on how passengers use these services. It will help us understand whether overnight services can work operationally and commercially on this route.
This is the latest step in GWR’s partnership with Gatwick Airport and Network Rail, as it looks to increase the number of passengers travelling to the airport via sustainable means.
Alongside the airport, this will also form part of a wider marketing campaign to promote travelling to Gatwick via rail.
