New rail franchise announces split in London Midland replacement
Abellio, JR East and Mitsui have announced the name of the new rail operation that will replace London Midland’s West Coast services when the current franchise ends in December.
London Northwestern is a reverential nod to the London and North Western Railway company – formerly the largest railway in Britain and the predecessor of the current West Coast Main Line.
All remaining London Midland services, operating in and around Birmingham, will be rebranded to West Midlands Railway. This brand was announced last year, after being created by the West Midlands Combined Authority.
The introduction of two new, separate, railway brands is to enable potential devolution of West Midlands Rail to the West Midlands Combined Authority. London Northwestern would remain under the remit of the Department for Transport for future retender.
Abellio, JR East and Mitsui said both London Northwestern and West Midlands Railway would offer fresh propositions for their customers. The two brands will have a shared management board, while being closely aligned to their specific regional and route requirements.
The current changes are a part of the near £1bn of investment into the network over the next nine years by the three partners. This includes £680m on new trains, produced by Bombardier and CAF and £70m on new depots.
Dominic Booth, managing director of Abellio UK, said: “We are delighted to bring the London Northwestern brand to a whole new generation of passengers, and it seems apt during a time of record investment into the railways.”
The partnership has secured the right to operate the West Midlands rail franchise until 2025/6. Abellio has a 70.1% share of the company and JR East and Mitsui own the remaining 29.9% in a 50:50 split.
Plans for the new franchise include:
· Nearly £1bn invested into the overall network over the course of the franchise;
· £680m investment into new and refurbished trains with 413 new carriages manufactured by Bombardier and CAF, creating space for an extra 85,000 passengers on rush hour services in Birmingham and London;
· £70m invested in new and existing depots to improve train reliability;
· Over £60m invested in station improvements delivering over 1,000 new car parking spaces and over 2,500 cycle parking spaces. This is alongside new and refurbished waiting rooms, more seats at stations and feasibility studies into developing new stations in the West Midlands;
· A greater choice of travel options for passengers thanks to the introduction of new Sunday services by 2021. This includes services from Birmingham to Shrewsbury and between Bedford and Bletchley;
· Greater provision of passenger information with audio visual displays on all trains by the end of 2019 as well as 800 new digital screens across the network;
· Free Wi-Fi on all trains by the end of December 2019;
· The creation of over 900 new apprenticeships over the course of the franchise, with existing staff benefitting from a £13m investment in staff training and development; and
· An investment of £1.25m into community rail initiatives.
