THE Department for Transport has signed two rail franchise agreements at the end of the 10-day routine standstill period following the announcement of the deals earlier this month.
The Northern franchise has been given to Arriva Rail North on a nine-year contract and the TransPennine Express franchise has been awarded to First Trans Pennine Express for seven years.
The franchisees will oversee a £1.2bn boost to rail services across the North, and have promised 500 new carriages and 2,000 extra services with room for 40,000 more passengers.
The franchises will be jointly managed from Leeds by the Department for Transport and Rail North Limited – which represents 29 local authorities across the north.
Together they have promised longer trains and extra services between Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Sheffield, a £1.4m investment in Hull station in time for the UK City of Culture 2017, and a £400m investment in new carriages.
They will also make £55 million of investment in stations to bring them into the 21st century.
Both franchisees will continue to roll out electrification of the railways and wifi access across the board.
Sir Richard Leese, chairman of the Association of Rail North Partner Authorities, described the agreements as “another crucial move towards devolution for the north”.
He said: “Rail North will now play a major role in the management and development of both new franchises, providing an excellent platform for further development and full devolution in the future.
“Rail North will work very closely with Transport for the North to drive forward economic growth by developing visionary proposals to deliver radically improved connectivity across the north.”
