ABELLIO has won the next East Anglia franchise, which starts in October. The Dutch company has beaten FirstGroup and National Express by gaining the new contract, which runs until October 2025.
The contract includes new trains for all routes, many of which are set to be built by Bombardier in Derby and the rest by Stadler. The new Aventra fleet from Bombardier will consist of 660 vehicles to be delivered between January 2019 and September 2020. In all, 1,043 vehicles are to be ordered, the DfT said.
The new trains will be able to meet regional aspirations for London trains to arrive at Ipswich in 60 minutes and Norwich in 90. This will cut present journey times by 20 per cent, but these timings will only be achieved by a few trains each day. The Department for Transport said there would be 'at least' four 90-minute services (two in each direction) between London and Norwich each weekday and two 60-minute services each day between London and Ipswich.
Other benefits announced by the DfT include 32,000 more peak time seats on London Liverpool Street services, universal smart ticketing and free WiFi on all East Anglia trains and stations.
Abellio is presently running the second of two short franchises which have been known until now as Greater Anglia, a title first used by the Strategic Rail Authority in 2004 when it merged Anglia Railways, First Great Eastern and the West Anglia routes of WAGN, awarding the enlarged franchise to National Express. Abellio took over from National Express in 2012, originally on an interim basis, after the NX franchise had been terminated earlier than expected. Abellio was then awarded a second, short contract which runs until October.
Dominic Booth, the managing director of Abellio UK, said: "This is great news not only for Abellio but for the whole of East Anglia. We are pleased to become preferred bidder to deliver a transformation in rail services across the region.
"It will enable us to build on the successes of the two short East Anglian franchises we have run since 2012, and we commend the DfT in running a transparent and rigorous procurement process.
"Our plans will greatly improve our customers’ experience with faster and more reliable journeys on new trains with higher frequencies and reduced journey times, to support the socio-economic well-being of East Anglia, one of the country’s most successful and fastest growing areas."
Bombardier said it was 'delighted' to be chosen, although it is understood that the final contracts for the new fleets have yet to be signed.
The award of the new franchise had been running late, because it had been due to be announced in June.