There are two train companies running trains to Bedford from London. If coming from the North of England then there is just the one, East Midlands Railway (formerly Midland Mainline). There are no country stops in North Bedfordshire between Bedford and Wellingborough in Northamptonshire. The only cross country link is the Silverlink Bletchly to Bedford Service. This is an antiquated service that does not run very frequently and not at all on Sundays.

NOTE: If you are travelling from Bedford to London a cheaper than a normal cheap day return can be purchased from the Tourist Office in Bedord (in the old Town Hall building in St Peter's Square). The ticket has all the usual restrictions on it regarding time with the added one of being only vaild on First Capital Connect trains.

Services from London are :

• First Capital Connect

• Formerly known as Thameslink but their franchise was handed over to First Capital Connect on the 1st of April 2006
• These are electric trains only and terminate at Bedford
• The services are generally regular running every 15 min (approx) although times vary according to the day and time of day with the slowest and less regular running on Sundays
• Travel times from London are around 50 mins (fast) and 1hr 20 mins (slow) with the slow trains stopping at every lamp post between London and Bedford. The trains are basic with cramped seating if you are larger than a midget. They are also not air conditioned so can be noisy with the windows open and draughty and cold when someone opens a window further up the carriage. If you are travelling from London I would strongly recommend the faster and more comfortable East Midlands Railways for the same ticket price - see below. WARNING - Subtle changes in ticketing arrangements mean that First Capital Connect issued tickets with any form of the word "Save" or "Saver" in it are not valid on peak time services. Check with rail staff before boarding a First Capital Connect or East Midlands Railway train. As of June 2006 any cheap day return to London is not valid, Monday to Friday between 4:30pm and 7:30pm from London to Bedford.
• Trains run to/from St Pancras International (Domestic) station (replaces the old Kings Cross Thameslink station). So it is possible to travel from Bedford to Gatwick airport and Brighton without changing trains.
• All trains are non-smoking services.

• East Midlands Railway (formerly Midland Mainline)

• These trains are the old Intercity services that British Rail used to run, The trains run between London and Nottingham / Leeds / Sheffield.
• Trains are more comfortable than Thameslink (seating is 4 across the carriage whereas Thameslink is 5) and are all air conditioned.
• Travel times are from 35 mins to 50 minutes depending upon the time of day and whether they stop at Luton or not. There are some trains that run non-stop to Bedford and others that make a stop at Luton or Luton Airport (never both), there are no other stops for these services.
• Trains run at approximately every 30 mins but there are gaps escpecially on Sundays and evenings so do check the time tables.
• All trains terminate in London at St. Pancreas Station which is north of the old (still being renovated) St Pancras station and assessed via the tube to the Kings Cross/St Pancreas stop. Tube lines are the Piccadilly, District, Metropolitan, Circle and Hammersmith & City.
• All trains are non-smoking services.

• Cross country service from Bedford to Bletchly (Nr. Milton Keynes)
• Runs infrequent services.
• Does not run any services on Sunday
• Antiquated rolling stock and signalling (mechanical "flag" signals) so not very reliable and trains are often cancelled.

• Stagecoach
  • Due to the competition the market was exposed to the United Counties bus service was privatised and bought out by Stagecoach which is now the only "competitor" in the area
  • Services to outlying villages are resonably good between 7am and 6 pm six days a week, After that forget it and resort to a taxi.
  • Sunday services are sparse and confined to major routes only.

• National Coaches
  • This is an inter-town service that runs links to Oxford, Cambridge, Milton Keynes, Rushton and Wellingbrough. Services are not so frequent but they are a cheap alternative to the train service.

• Approach via M1
  • The M1 runs to the West of Bedford past Woborn and Milton Keynes from London & Luton in the south and on to Northampton and Rugby in the North. This is a main artery for road transport and gets very busy indeed during rush hours. The sheer weight of traffic can cause all lanes to crawl to a stop and an accident causes havoc.
  • Leave the M1 at junction 13 if driving north and consider junction 14 if driving south. Avoid Northampton unless you are travelling off peak or expect delays through the town or take a long detour around the bypass. M1 junction 13 to Bedford centre is approximately 11 miles (17.7km). From Junction 14 to central Bedford the distance is approximately 13 miles (21km).

• Approach via A1
  • The A1 runs from London via Stevenage in the south and Peterbrough in the north. This is a mixed road ranging from dual carriageway (2 lane) to a full motorway spec three lanes and in some places even 4 lanes. This road is quieter than the M1 but is still very busy indeed during the peak rush hours of morning and evening. Leave the A1 at the "Black Cat" roundabout at Roxton (from the north or south) and the distance to Bedford is 8 miles (13km).

This area of our web site is dedicated to some of the villages in North Bedfordshire together with some of the amenities available. The village and pubs in the attached pages is not an exhaustive list of what North.Bedfordshire has to offer. This section is a work in progress.