Sunday 16th May saw the commencement of the new timetable, with the standard weekday pattern of services starting on Monday 17th.  The biggest change is on the Corby services, which become a largely self-contained service of electric trains branded 'EMR Connect'.  It runs twice an hour in each direction between Corby and London St Pancras, calling at Kettering, Wellingborough, Bedford, Luton and Luton Airport Parkway.  In doing so, it also serves as the ‘Luton Airport Express’, complementing similar shuttles for the other London airports.  It also relieves the Intercity services, which serve Market Harborough, of their intermediate calls south of Kettering.  With a few peak-time exceptions, our trains therefore nearly all call at Kettering only on their way to and from London.  This gives a half-hourly connection to all the main intermediate stations, addressing concerns we have expressed about gaps in the timetable from Kettering in particular.  It also means the bus link between Wellingborough and Bedford can be withdrawn.

The basic daytime pattern is now from Market Harborough to London at xx:26 and xx57 each hour (with minor variations), and roughly xx:03 and xx:32 to Leicester and Nottingham.
There are other improvements, including an earlier first train into London, a more even spread of services out of London in the evening peak, and a later last train south from Derby and Leicester in the evenings.
However, with few exceptions, we lose our non-stop trains to and from London, and direct services to Luton Airport Parkway.  We also would like to see an earlier first train north on a Sunday morning than the present 10:29.
We also lose our HSTs; replaced by Meridians released by the electric trains on the Corby route, plus the small fleet of Class 180 units transferred a few months ago from Hull Trains.
Sadly, the Saturday through train to York no longer runs.  However, if you fancy a slightly different mini-excursion, you can take a weekday lunchtime round trip from Kettering via Corby and Oakham to Melton Mowbray and back.  This gives the opportunity to travel over the iconic Welland Viaduct at Harringworth.  However, it does not run on Wednesdays!
The full timetable is available here on EMR’s website.

EMR were clearly not going to let the demise of the HSTs pass unnoticed.  Not only had they repainted HST power-car 43102 in BR InterCity 'Swallow' livery (see post for 24/02/2021 below), on 14th April they revealed 43274 repainted very smartly in their deep purple house-style.  Considering the design of the HST dates back to 1975, it carried the livery remarkably well.  The pictures below show it at the head of the 16:29 from Market Harborough to Nottingham (15:34 from St Pancras) on 16th April 2021.

The electrification of the railway between Bedford and Corby is due to come into service with the new timetable on 15th May.  There has long been a desire to see the electrification of the whole Midland Main Line, and the first stage of that, from Kettering to Market Harborough, is now in the early stages of implementation.  Vegetation clearance along the lineside from Kettering is well under way, with trees being either felled or trimmed back where they are too close to the line and the future overhead wires.  Work on the new substation that will feed the electrification has also started.  This is near Braybrooke, where the National Grid high-voltage power line crosses the railway. The substation is due to be completed by autumn 2022, in time for the electrification itself to be installed.

The restoration of the two old platform trolleys for use by Market Harborough in Bloom has been completed.  Local retired engineer Phil Clark undertook the work, with the timber for the decks generously donated by Glenmere Timber on Gores Lane.  The trolleys are to be installed at the station as part of a decorative planting scheme by Market Harborough in Bloom, who are the 'adopters' of the station.  The aim is to provide a colourful 'Welcome to Market Harborough' feature at this important gateway to the town. 
The exact location for the trolleys is still to be decided, but the hope is to place them near the top of the ramp from the booking office to platform 1, on the site of the 1970s waiting room building once that has been demolished and replaced by new facilities.  Until that is done and the station is ready to receive them, the trolleys are now in secure storage.  The pictures below show the two trolleys in the workshop awaiting transfer to temporary storage, and in the proud possession of Market Harborough in Bloom.  To see the state the trolleys were in prior to restoration, scroll down to the item dated 23/10/2020 below.
​(Photos: Steve Jones)

As the InterCity 125 HSTs near the end of their long careers on the Midland Main Line, EMR have taken the pleasing step of repainting power car 43102 in the stylish British Rail InterCity ‘Swallow’ livery.  This power car, partnered with sister 43159, achieved the world speed record for a diesel train, on a test run between Northallerton and York on 1st November 1987.  The record, 148.5mph, still stands.
HSTs have been running on our line for 39 years but this comes to an end with the timetable change in May 2021.  The introduction of electric trains on the Corby services and a reshuffle of the Meridian fleet along with the recently introduced Class 180 trains means the HSTs can be retired.  With the current timetable reduced because of Covid, only two HSTs are currently in use each day.  It seems incredible now to think that they were built in the mid- to late-1970s as a temporary stop-gap pending development of the tilting Advanced Passenger Train (APT), and are still working with several train operators over 40 years later!  They transformed long-distance travel in Britain and they will be much missed.  43102, however, is destined for dignified retirement at the National Railway Museum in York.