Virgin return to West Coast in UK

Virgin Class 390, 390013 "Virgin Spirit", at Stoke-on-Trent railway station back in the days of Virgin West Coast Mark One (Geograph UK / El Pollock - CC BY-SA 2.0) Geograph UK / El Pollock - CC BY-SA 2.0

You wait forever for an open access operator on the West Coast Main Line, then two come along at once. Hot on the tail lights of FirstGroup’s Lumo, here comes Richard Branson’s Virgin Group. The former franchise holder on the WCML has applied for an open access licence to bring Virgin liveried trains back to Glasgow and London for the first time in five years.

Want to read more?

Subscribe now!

Take advantage of our exclusive offer to get full access to all premium content.

See the offer

Tags: , , , , , ,

Author: Simon Walton

Simon Walton is UK correspondent for RailTech.com and Railfreight.com

E-mail

Related posts

ÖBB picks contractor for major upgrade to Austria’s ‘most important’ rail line

Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) has awarded a multi-million-euro contract to expand one of the country’s most important transport arteries. The domestic construction company will be tasked with boosting…
CPK enters new phase as Poland approves new high speed line

The Polish government has chosen the route for its new high-speed lines between the Central Communication Port (CPK) and the cities of Płock and Włocławek. Marking a new…
‘National security’: Why did Spain block Hungary’s Talgo takeover?

Spain’s government has blocked the 619 million euro sale of Spanish train producer Talgo to a Hungarian consortium due to “national security” concerns. That’s because the buyers are…
SNCF’s low-cost rival Kevin Speed could secure €400m EU loan

French open-access operator Kevin Speed, one of the first companies to challenge SNCF’s high-speed rail dominance in France, could soon secure significant EU financing. The European Investment Bank…

Add your comment

characters remaining.

Log in through one of the following social media partners to comment.