Harborough Rail Users Committee met at the Red Cow pub in Market Harborough on Monday evening 9th March.  This was a routine meeting and the main topic discussed was the delayed introduction of the new Class 810 Aurora bi-mode train fleet and its implications. The delivery of these trains is very late.  This plus the reduced fleet of Class 222 Meridian diesel trains as the first ones are transferred away for use by open access operator Lumo for London – Scotland services, means we have an increasingly evident shortage of rolling stock for our services at Market Harborough. Trains are too often being cancelled or short-formed (five instead of ten carriages) or have other faults such as toilets not working. We have taken this up with EMR, but it is clear that the remaining diesel fleet is being ‘sweated’, with insufficient spare capacity until the new fleet is fully in service.
The general growth in rail business has exacerbated overcrowding on our trains.  This problem is especially severe when weekend engineering work closes the parallel East Coast Main Line between King’s Cross and Peterborough, with many LNER passengers using EMR services instead.
Other topics covered included the new ANPR car park payment system, which appears to be working well; congestion in the station approach road and forecourt; and concern about the closure of access from the platforms to the middle footbridge at Nottingham station, which is an important interchange point for passengers from Market Harborough. 

On 5th March, EMR announced that they would be removing seat reservations from 1st April 2026. This is a temporary measure while the train fleet transitions from the diesel Class 222 Meridian units to the new bi-mode Class 810 Auroras. These have different seating configurations, but they can also be swapped for one another in service at short notice.
Advice from EMR states:
“Operating two fleets makes it technically and operationally difficult to provide seat reservations as the seating layouts are different and the technology on the Class 222 is old and inflexible. While we know our customers value seat reservations, we also know that failing to honour a booked reservation is one of the biggest causes of dissatisfaction.
We have therefore taken the decision to remove seat reservations on all Intercity services from 1 April 2026 while we transition to our new Aurora fleet. We recognise that inconsistent reservations have created challenges and frustration for customers and colleagues. This temporary measure will allow us to provide greater certainty during the fleet transition.
From 1 April 2026:

• All Intercity seat reservations will be withdrawn
• Existing seat reservations for travel on or after this date will no longer be valid (wheelchair and bicycle reservations will remain in place)

Furthermore, the option to make new seat reservations for travel beyond 1 April has been removed from all booking channels.
We are working closely with our IT team to ensure clear information for passengers is displayed on the reservation screens on the trains and for the management of passenger assistance and bicycle reservations.
We are contacting customers with reservations who are travelling from 1 April and providing them with simple information about what this means for their journey. Clear messaging will be provided through booking channels, stations and on-train announcements.
We will keep you informed as the fleet transition progresses and as we are able to reintroduce a consistent reservation system for our customers.”
We in Harborough Rail Users have discussed this with EMR and are satisfied that it is a reasonable temporary measure during the fleet changeover.  We have also been assured that it will not result in any reduction in the numbers of discounted Advance tickets available at each fare tier.

Ticket refunds
The arrangements for refunds on tickets not used are also changing from 1st April.  This is a change in the National Rail Conditions of Travel.  Further details can be found here: https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/help-and-assistance/compensation-and-refunds/refunds-change/
In essence, the previous allowance of up to 28 days after date of travel has been removed, such that refunds can only be requested up until 23:59 on the day before the ticket becomes valid, unless your train is delayed or cancelled.  The reason is to prevent fraudulent misuse of the system.

The Government’s Office of Rail and Road publishes annual statistics including estimates of station usage.  These are defined as ‘entrances and exits’ and are derived from ticket sales (‘entrance’ at origin station, ‘exit’ at destination).  For the reporting year April 2024 to March 2025, these figures were released on 4th December 2025.
The total for Market Harborough in the year was 943,468, which was a 6.9% increase on 2023-24’s total of 882,598.  This just exceeds the pre-Covid peak of 937,484 in 2019-20.  Market Harborough’s increase roughly matches the national picture, with UK rail journeys totalling 1.73 billion, up 7.4% from the previous year’s 1.61 billion.
Market Harborough is thus the 566th busiest station on the national network, out of a total of 2,589 stations. 
The main destination or origin for journeys from or to Market Harborough continues to be London, with 447,496 journeys, up slightly from 439,770 in 2023-24.  London's proportion of the overall total for Market Harborough fell slightly, however, from 49.8% in 2023-24 to 47.4% in 2024-25. 
Journeys made with season tickets totalled 171,658 (18.2% of total journeys), up from 147,122 (16.7%) in 2023-24.  Despite this modest increase, season ticket usage is still not much more than half of the pre-Covid total of 311,164 in 2019-20 (33.2% of total journeys).
Will Market Harborough have over a million passengers next year?!

The introduction of EMR’s new bi-mode Hitachi Class 810 Aurora train fleet has been severely delayed; they were meant to start running in 2022!  Covid interrupted things, of course, and testing identified issues with the first of the new trains that needed extensive rectification.
Promised starts in November 2025 did not happen and it began to look as though the first run would not be until the December 2025 timetable change. However, on 3rd December, Aurora unit number 810010 operated the first public duty for the type, the 07:00 Sheffield to St Pancras (which does not call at Market Harborough).  The same unit later worked the 17:05 St Pancras to Nottingham, calling at Market Harborough at 18:07 and thereby becoming our first Aurora service, and thus our first electric train.  However, the electrification only extends as far as Wigston South Junction, so the train was diesel powered by the time it arrived in Leicester. The changeover from electric to diesel takes place at speed and is almost unnoticeable.  We look forward to more Auroras being introduced into service over the next few months.

The Automatic Number Plate Recognition, ANPR, system came into use at Market Harborough station’s main car park on 28th November 2025.  Installation had started on 24th November. Pleasingly, the car park was free of charge during the few days in the transition period and there appeared to be a visible increase in usage!  For more information on the system, see the story below at 6th October 2025.
Parking is still charged daily but is now payable on entry.  Harborough Rail Users have expressed concerns to EMR about this, partly for non-regular users not knowing what to do and having little time before their train arrives.  Others may not know exactly when they will be returning.  Pay on exit would solve both problems.  EMR insist that the system is easy to use and allows additional days to be purchased as needed via the mobile phone app (see left).
There are some benefits compared with the old barrier system, including free parking for Blue Badge holders (subject to registering their badge on the system) and the 30 minutes’ grace before payment is required, allowing free short-stay parking. 
​Arrangements have also been made for the Station Adopters, Market Harborough in Bloom Volunteers, to be able to park free of charge when carrying out activities at the station.