Central Bedfordshire is served by three railway lines to and from London, and by the Marston Vale line between Bedford and Bletchley.
Leighton Buzzard Station
This is on the London North Western Railway line from the West Midlands, Northampton and Milton Keynes to London Euston via Hemel Hempstead, Watford Junction and Harrow and Wealdstone.
Connections can be made at Milton Keynes with Avanti West Coast long distance trains to Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, North Wales, the North West and Scotland.
Flitwick and Harlington Stations
These are on the Thameslink line from Bedford via Luton and St Albans to London St Pancras International, Farringdon, London Blackfriars and London Bridge. Many trains continue across central London to Gatwick Airport and Brighton and destinations in south London, Kent and Sussex.
Connections can be made at London St Pancras with Eurostar services to Europe.
Connections can be made at Farringdon with Elizabeth Line services to Paddington, Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Liverpool Street, Heathrow Airport, East and West London.
Connections can be made at Bedford and Luton with East Midlands Railway long distance services to the East Midlands and South Yorkshire.
Bedford and Luton Stations
These are served by Thameslink and East Midlands Railway services. Luton – Dunstable Busway services provide a rapid link between Dunstable and Luton Interchange for Luton Station, with some routes running 24/7.
Sandy, Biggleswade and Arlesey Stations
These are on the Thameslink / Great Northern line from Peterborough via Hitchin, Stevenage and Hatfield to London Kings Cross or St Pancras. Most trains continue across central London to Farringdon, London Blackfriars and London Bridge and to Gatwick Airport, with connections available for destinations to Kent, Sussex and the south coast.
Connections can be made at Peterborough or Stevenage with London North Eastern Railway long distance services to Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland, and at Stevenage with Hull Trains long distance services to Hull and with Lumo Trains long distance services to Newcastle and Edinburgh.
Connections can be made at London Kings Cross or St Pancras with Eurostar services to Europe from St Pancras.
Connections can be made at Farringdon with Elizabeth Line services to Paddington, Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Liverpool Street, Heathrow Airport, East and West London.
Millbrook, Lidlington, Ridgmont and Aspley Guise Stations
These are on the Marston Vale line operated by London North Western Railway between Bedford and Bletchley. The Marston Vale Community Rail Partnership website has more about the line.
National Rail Enquiries has customer information for all passenger rail services on the National Rail network in England, Wales and Scotland.
Our concessionary bus pass holders (older and disabled people) can travel at half fare on some train journeys locally.
Railcards can offer savings on train fares for regular passengers, and are available to many groups of passengers, including people under 30, over 60, people who often travel together or with children, armed services veterans and people with disabilities. The Network Railcard is valid through London and the South East, all railway stations in Central Bedfordshire are in the Network Railcard area.
Railcards are separate from our concessionary bus pass scheme, and are managed by the Rail Delivery Group.
Travelling to London
Transport for London has information on all forms of transport in London including local trains, buses, Underground and Docklands Light Railway. Travelcards for one day or longer can be purchased from railway stations in Bedfordshire, which combine a train journey to London and unlimited travel within London on National Rail and TfL services.
Our concessionary bus passes may be used on TfL London Bus services (not trains, Underground or Docklands Light Railway), but need to be shown to the bus driver.
Plusbus
Plusbus adds a bus travel zone (outside London) to train tickets, either for one day or added to a train season ticket. The Arlesey, Biggleswade and Sandy, Flitwick, Leighton Buzzard, Luton and Dunstable areas all have Plusbus schemes, along with over 200 other towns around Britain. Plusbus tickets can not currently be purchased on buses, but can be bought in advance either online or from railway stations.
Leighton Buzzard Narrow Gauge Railway
Central Bedfordshire is also home to the heritage Leighton Buzzard Narrow Gauge Railway.