HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : New Franchise Moves Closer as SRA Agrees Terms for Restructuring of North Western Trains [March 2001]

The press release issued by the Strategic Rail Authority on 21 March 2001.

The Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) took a further step towards the creation of a Northern franchise today by agreeing with FirstGroup plc and the Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and Merseytravel Passenger Transport Executives to amend the existing North Western Franchise.

Under the terms of the agreement, First North Western will separate the operation of their services and terminate the franchise, as required, to aid the creation of three new franchises – TransPennine Express, Wales & Borders and Northern. The agreement will assist the SRA in setting up these franchises and is designed to make the transfer of services as smooth as possible.

In addition, the SRA will receive £37 million from First North Western in return for a revised franchise payment profile. This has been designed to ensure that the current level of services can be maintained and properly resourced until the new replacement franchises are let.

Mike Grant, Chief Executive of the SRA, said:

“This marks a further step up in the momentum of the SRA franchise replacement process. The agreement with FirstGroup and the PTEs seeks to ensure that current service levels are maintained, while the SRA restructures in preparation for its new TransPennine, Wales & Borders and Northern franchises.

All three franchises are designed to provide a superior service for new and existing rail passengers and I look forward to further progress on each of them in the coming months.”