Angry village commuters today hit out at a decision to axe a morning train service.

Rail users say the new times introduced by Great Eastern to improve the service to London will leave the village commuters with no means of getting into work on time at Colchester.

In three weeks time, Great Eastern introduces a new service which will see trains stopping at Thorpe and then speeding straight past villages on the line to Colchester.

Currently the train stops at Weeley, Great Bentley, Alresford and Wivenhoe.

Villagers living along the line, who use the train service to get into Colchester for an 8.30am or 9am start, will be left stranded.

Janice Pyman, of Coppice Way, Alresford, is urging fellow commuters to write to complain about the change.

She works at the JobCentre in Southway, Colchester, and catches the 7.45am from Clacton which calls at Alresford at 8.10am.

She has relied on the train to get her to work on and off for the past eight years.

She said: "It's a very busy train. You can't just pull out a train people rely on."

She said the new timetable meant she would either have to catch a train 30 minutes earlier or half an hour later - which would mean she was late to work.

"I just won't be able to get to work by public transport. We are being encouraged not to bring our cars into town and now the train is being taken off," she said.

A spokesman for Great Eastern confirmed the new timetable meant the 7.45am would not be stopping at villages between Thorpe and Colchester.

She added: "It is part of a complete overhaul. It is to speed up the service into London."

She said any letters of complaint would be looked at and considered.

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