GNER and Railtrack revealed last night that the line closures which have plagued the railways since the Hatfield disaster are finally over.

The announcement came as a new timetable bringing faster trains on the East Coast main line came into force - and GNER promised more and speedier services were on the way.

Major improvements on the railways, which have caused havoc since Hatfield, have been completed, said the firms, and any future works would be done with minimum disruption.

GNER spokesman David Mallender said: "Our understanding is that there are no more closures planned.

"If work is carried out, it will be during the night or it won't involve closure of the line."

Railtrack confirmed: "No more line closures."

The latest timetable will run until March 18, when further improvements are to be brought in.

Trips between Durham and the capital will be as fast as 2hrs 46mins - only four minutes slower than pre-Hatfield and 74 minutes faster than pre-Christmas.

Trips from York to King's Cross have been cut from 3hrs 8mins to 1hr 57mins, while the journey from Darlington is now 2hrs 29mins - down from 3hrs 41mins.

GNER says work on the lines between now and March 18 will see journey times cut further.

This new timetable was brought in three weeks sooner than planned.

And GNER is planning to follow in Virgin Trains' footsteps by offering cheaper ticket deals in an effort to win back customers who have lost faith in the railways after Hatfield.

Virgin's own half-price offer started yesterday and the company hailed it a huge success with phone lines "totally inundated" with callers.

GNER also announced last night it was dropping its £3 reservation charge for carrying bikes.

From now on pushbikes will be carried free - although advance bookings will still have to be made