THE DEPARTMENT FOR TRANSPORT has issued the Invitation to Tender for the next West Coast franchise, which is due to start in December. Rail minister Theresa Villiers said the contract, which is to run until 2026 at least, would be 'more flexible', and include another 28,000 seats. Smartcards will also be introduced.
The contract will be only the second for Intercity West Coast since privatisation in the 1990s, when Virgin Trains won the first 15-year contract for the route.
This contract had been due to expire in March, but it has been extended to December to allow the lengthening of 31 Pendolino tilting trains from 9 to eleven cars to continue. The Department also said four new 11-car trains are being added, but strictly only three are additions: the fourth set replaces the train which was written off after being damaged in the Grayrigg derailment of February 2007.
The rest of the existing Pendolino fleet, another 21 trains, will still be 9 cars long after the DfT declined to take up an option to order two more cars from Alstom for each of these sets as well.
Ms Villiers said the successful bidder would be encouraged to 'invest in improvements at stations and help drive down excessive costs. Other benefits for passengers will include the introduction of smart ticketing technology'.
The present West Coast contractor Virgin has already suggested that the line's franchise holder should have greater responsibility for improving key stations on the route, such as Crewe or Carlisle.
Ms Villiers explained: "A longer, more flexible franchise will encourage private sector investment, for example in improving stations. It will also promote greater efficiency to enable improvements to be made whilst driving down costs.
"The introduction of new requirements on passenger satisfaction will mean the operator has to focus strongly on the issues that matter most to passengers; and the roll out of smart ticketing will provide many more passengers with greater convenience and the sort of advantages already enjoyed in the capital."
The shortlisted bidders for the new contract, which is to start on 9 December, are Abellio, First Group, Keolis/SNCF and Virgin.
Their bids are due in May, and the new operator will be announced in August. The new franchise will run until March 2026, with an option for the Department to extend it by up to 20 months. This provision appears to allow for a possible delay in the opening of HS2, which the government has said will be needed to provide essential additional capacity to relieve the West Coast route in the longer term.