SCOTTISH transport minister Keith Brown will announce this morning that Serco has won the new Caledonian Sleeper franchise.
Transport Scotland has separated the sleeper operation from the rest of ScotRail to form a standalone contract for the first time.
Unconfirmed reports have claimed that Serco had offered a major upgrade to the type and quality of service, moving the operation towards the 'luxury train' market.
FirstGroup, which currently runs ScotRail and had bid for the sleeper contract, has already reacted to the imminent announcement.
FirstGroup chief executive Tim O'Toole said: “I would like to thank all of our employees who have worked hard to deliver the best possible service for Caledonian Sleeper customers over the past ten years. We submitted a strong bid which would have offered further high quality services for passengers and a good return for taxpayers.
“As a Scottish company, we remain committed to providing more and better rail services for Scotland. We have operated the current ScotRail franchise since 2004, providing more than 2,300 services per day, and over that time the franchise has achieved record highs in passenger numbers and also in customer satisfaction scores. We are shortlisted for the next generation of the ScotRail franchise due to be awarded by Transport Scotland in the coming months.
“We will continue to provide sleeper passengers with the best possible service until the new franchise commences, and will work closely with the new operator to ensure a seamless handover. We are tremendously proud to have provided this important service, providing a key link between Scotland and London, for the last decade and wish the team every success for the future.”
It's the second rail franchise disappointment for First in less than a week. The Department for Transport announced on 23 May that the next Thameslink franchise had been won by Govia, which means that First Capital Connect will end in mid-September.
The Caledonian Sleepers are overnight services to and from London Euston, which start or finish as two trains in London but divide or join en route so that several Scottish destinations are served, including Aberdeen, Inverness and Fort William.
The cross-border service is one of the last of its kind to survive in Britain. The other is the Night Riviera between London Paddington, Plymouth and Penzance, which forms part of the Great Western franchise.
The new Caledonian contract starts on 1 April next year.