Better journeys for passengers on the West Coast Main Line
19 Jun 2014 04:23 PM
New contract will bring
£35 million worth of passenger benefits, including 5,500 extra
standard-class seats per day.
A new deal for rail services on
the West Coast Main Line that will bring thousands more seats, free wi-fi and
pave the way for new journeys on the route has been awarded to West Coast
Trains Limited (Virgin), Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin announced
yesterday (19 June 2014).
The direct award contract will
run for 2 years and 9 months and see the train operator continue to provide
vital passenger journeys between London, Scotland and Wales as the government
forges ahead with its multi-billion pound investment to improve and maintain
our railways.
The new contract will bring
£35 million worth of passenger benefits, including:
- 21 first-class carriages
converted to standard class, delivering 5,500 extra standard seats per day
across the network
- free wi-fi at stations and
improved coverage across the entire fleet
- more than £20 million
invested to modernise and enhance stations, including improving waiting rooms,
seats and shelters
- £2.5 million to improve
the interiors of the Pendolino train fleet, as well as £2.75 million
spent on improving catering facilities
- improved station cleanliness and
accessibility
- new targets for passenger
satisfaction, train punctuality and cleanliness
- plans developed to increase car
parking at Carlisle, Lancaster and Stafford
In addition, Virgin will now
start work to secure new direct services between Shrewsbury, Blackpool and
London from December, boosting connections for passengers and local businesses.
The deal will also create jobs, including apprenticeships and traineeships,
underlining the government’s commitment to get more people into
work.
Transport Secretary Patrick
McLoughlin said:
This deal will provide thousands
more seats and better journeys for the tens of thousands of passengers who use
these services every day. The West Coast provides a vital artery between London
and Scotland and it is crucial we do everything we can to improve services on
this much-used route.
This is further proof of our
commitment to get the best deal for passengers and taxpayers with Virgin set to
pay more than £430 million to run the franchise. It’s all part of
our long-term economic plan to drive forward our economy and provide better
services now and great services with HS2.
The deal covers a strategically
important route in the UK providing commuter, leisure and business journeys
between:
- London
- the West
Midlands
- Greater
Manchester
- Merseyside
- Strathclyde
- Lothian
for more than 30 million
passengers annually.
Find out more about the West Coast rail
franchise
The company has also committed
to working with Network Rail, communities and stakeholders to look at how
further improvements in journey times can be made from London to Scotland. This
includes work to remodel Carstairs junction – a significant bottleneck on
the network.
Patrick McCall, Virgin Trains
Executive Co-Chairman, said:
We’re delighted to have
reached a deal after some tough negotiations with the DfT. It puts the problems
of 2012 firmly behind us, and shows the clear benefits of a well-run franchise
system.
This deal is great news for
passengers and taxpayers, with significant benefits for our customers as well
as a big increase in the money we pay to government. We know wi-fi is high on
our customers’ priorities and we’re delighted that we’re
going to be able to offer them free and super-fast wi-fi. Together with
thousands of extra seats and plans for new services, this deal will mean big
improvements for millions of Virgin Trains passengers.
The company will now submit
plans to the Office of Rail
Regulation to extend current services from London. Under the plans
Shrewsbury would have 2 services in each direction Monday to Saturday and 1
service in each direction on Sunday. Blackpool North would have 1 service in
each direction Monday to Friday.
As part of the deal the company
has committed to employing at least 30 apprentices, 18 traineeships, four
Network Rail Track and Train graduate placements, 12 Virgin Red Track scheme
participants and 12 ex-offenders through the St Giles Trust. The new agreement
will run until April 2017 when a new competed long-term franchise is expected
to commence.
The contract is the sixth direct
award to be delivered by the department following the relaunch of its
franchising schedule in March last year. Industry expert Richard Brown in
his independent report into franchising had advised staggering
competitions to make them more deliverable. The government announced a
programme of direct awards to deliver this.
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