Cuts to services halted - at least for time being
CONTEST TO PICK TRAINS FRANCHISEE CALLED OFF
TRANSPORT Secretary Chris Grayling has halted the contest to choose a firm to run trains on the CrossCountry line through Newcastle, Durham and Berwick.
The announcement means that proposals to cut some services have been scrapped, at least for now.
Mr Grayling said he was halting the contest after appointing Keith Williams, the former British Airways chief executive and deputy chairman of John Lewis, to lead a review into the future of the rail network.
The Department for Transport said: “Due to the unique geographic nature of the CrossCountry franchise, which runs from Aberdeen to Penzance and cuts across multiple parts of the railway, awarding this franchise in 2019 could impact on the review’s conclusions.
“It has therefore been decided that this competition will not proceed.”
It means the future of the franchise is uncertain. A new franchise was due to begin in December 2019 and a shortlist of bidders was to be announced this month, but current franchise holders Arriva UK will now continue running trans for the foreseeable future.
The good news for passengers is that threats to cut services to smaller stations north of Newcastle appear to have been lifted, at least for now.
A Department for Transport consultation about the new franchise included proposals to reduce the number of stops on CrossCountry passenger services, as part of an attempt to cut overcrowding.
It led to concern that fewer trains will stop at stations such as Morpeth, Alnmouth and Berwick.
And Transport Minister Baroness Sugg has confirmed that this was being considered, telling the House of Lords: “There will be at least one CrossCountry train per hour north of Newcastle, to Edinburgh or beyond. The options for intermediate stops to stations north of Newcastle form part of the consultation.”
Anne-Marie Trevelyan, the Conservative MP for Berwick, led opposition to the potential cuts.
The proposal was one of a number of ideas for the CrossCountry Passenger Rail Franchise, which includes longdistance services stretching from Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh in Scotland to Cambridge in the south east of England and Penzance in the south west.
Destinations on the CrossCountry franchise include Newcastle, Durham and Darlington.