Franchise News
DfT launches rail franchise consultation
Passengers across London, the South East, Sussex and the South Coast are being 'asked for their views to help shape a major new franchise for train services across their area', Rail Minister Theresa Villiers announced this week.
The franchise is...
Franchise News
Northern Rail granted franchise continuation
The Department for Transport (DfT) has granted a continuation of Northern Rail's Northern Franchise.
Northern will continue to operate local and regional rail services across the north of England until 1 April 2014.
Ian Bevan, Managing Director, Northern Rail said:
“We are...
Franchise News
Government must ‘act now’ to reform rail franchises
The Government’s commitment to reforming rail franchises has 'barely begun to be turned into reality', the Chairman of the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) has said.
Speaking at a lecture at the Institution of Civil Engineers in central London...
Franchise News
Rail franchise bidders announced
The Department for Transport today announced the shortlisted bidders in line to run three rail franchises.
A total of 13 firms are in the running to become the next operators of the Great Western, Thameslink and Essex Thameside rail franchises.
The...
Franchise News
Go-Ahead sees ‘strong growth’ in rail division
Transport operator Go-Ahead has seen 'strong growth' in its rail division but announced a 12.9% fall it its profit for the first half of the year.
Go-Ahead operates the London Midland, Southeastern and Southern rail franchises, and said pre-tax profit...
Franchise News
Southern switch for Gatwick
The day-to-day management of Gatwick Airport station has transferred from Network Rail to Southern. Says Southern Director, David Scorey, ‘We already manage 156 stations and it’s that station management experience, which includes provision of excellent levels of customer service and train dispatch, which is at the core of our business. It was the obvious thing [...]
Franchise News
West Coast contest begins
The DfT has announced four shortlisted bidders to run the West Coast Main Line from December 2012. Abellio, FirstGroup, Keolis/ SNCF and Virgin go head to head to contest the franchise. The franchise is for 15 years and includes a commitment to provide 28,000 seats a day under a new flexible agreement which will allow [...]
Franchise News
New rail operator boosts security on its network
Greater Anglia has said it has already 'doubled the numbers of safety and security staff' on its rail network after taking over the franchise from National Express East Anglia.
The train operator said it wants to 'ensure customers feel assured...
Franchise News
New Greater Anglia franchise operator outlines plans
Abellio is to take over the Greater Anglia franchise from National Express on 5 February.
The Group will be responsible intercity, commuter and rural services throughout the region including the Stansted Express service.
The duration of the contract is 29 months (32...
Franchise News
New West Coast rail franchise ‘to deliver 28,000 more seats’
Passengers travelling between London, Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow are 'set to benefit from an extra 28,000 seats a day under a new flexible franchise agreement which will allow more services to be scheduled around busy periods'.
In addition, a long...
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Cornwall public transport gets £50 million boost
Public transport links in Cornwall will be transformed thanks to £50 million of government investment to deliver the Mid-Cornwall...