Southeastern is axing a direct service to London Victoria on the Maidstone East line.

The move comes as a new timetable comes into force on Sunday, May 20.

It will mean the loss of train from Maidstone East and nearby villages such as Lenham, Barming, and East Malling which arrives at Victoria between 8am and 9am.

Customers will be left with a service to London Blackfriars with Victoria commuters having to change at Bromley South.

Currently, passengers who want to arrive in Victoria between 8am and 9am can take three direct trains arriving at 8.23am, 8.37am, and 8.50am.

The remaining train will get traveller to London Victoria at 8.09am with a change at Bromley South.

The changes will leave them with just two direct services to the terminus.

Meanwhile, the new timetables will mean one peak time service from Faversham to London Victoria will be lengthened by 12 minutes, adding up to an extra hour on the train over the course of a week.

Helen Whately, MP for Faversham and Mid Kent, has written to the rail company asking for an explanation for reducing the number of services and lengthening others, and wants to know if other MPs have concerns about the new timetables.

Mrs Whately said: “Commuters in Faversham and Mid Kent already have a tough ride on too many services: delays, long journey times, and out-of-date carriages.

That’s why I was dismayed when I saw the new timetables which will mean more crowding from the Maidstone villages, and longer journeys for commuters in Faversham.

"The Maidstone East line already suffers from a higher cost-per-mile than similar journeys on other lines, and the peak time services are notorious for delays."

Off-peak journeys will also take much longer, making affordable day-trips harder."

Southeastern says the changes are aimed at making more routes available.

A statement on its website says: "There’ll be more services and new journey opportunities for several stations, but many trains will be revised and will run at different times than they do now."