Train users have spoken of their anger at the loss of another direct service from Brighton.

On Monday The Argus reported a service from Brighton to the north of England will be withdrawn in December.

The ending of the Cross Country Trains service means passengers will no longer be able to travel directly from stations including Brighton, Haywards Heath, Gatwick, Redhill, Croydon and Kensington Olympia to Birmingham and Manchester.

Instead they will have to change trains in London.

The Argus has been contacted by many disappointed readers.

David Cole, of Queens Park Road, Brighton, said: “At one time, there was not just a Brighton to Manchester service but a daily train that ran on to and from Edinburgh.

“When Virgin took on the Cross Country franchise, it tried to strengthen the service to Brighton and while it managed a little, it was generally thwarted by the perceived lack of train pathways on the Brighton line.

“Sadly it lost the franchise and we have become the victims of civil servants who sit in their London offices determining our train services without making any attempt to know the situation on the ground.

“It is thanks to these faceless bureaucrats that we lost the Brighton to Basingstoke and Reading service last December and will lose the Brighton to Watford Junction service this December as well.

“The determination seems to be to make the Brighton line nothing more than a London suburban service.”

Carolyn Scholes, of Busticle Lane, Sompting, said: “Our families live in the Greater Manchester area and my elderly father often makes the journey to visit us. For years he has used the direct train from Manchester to Brighton because of the convenience of not having to change trains and travel across London.

“He is now in his late 80s and the loss of this service will mean he has to travel to Euston and then have the extra cost of a taxi to Victoria.

Because of his age he is reluctant to use the Underground.

“The journey time for the direct service was slower than the express Virgin trains to Euston and then onwards from Victoria, but for many people the convenience of the service outweighed that. The axing of this service will be a great loss.”

Will the changes affect you? If so, call Emily-Ann Elliott on 01273 544538 or email emily.elliott@theargus.co.uk.