Revamp up in the air after East Coast Mainline franchise ditched
GRAND plans to transform Peterborough's railway station into a "world class" travel hub appeared to be in disarray today after National Express ditched its East Coast Mainline franchise.
GRAND plans to transform Peterborough's railway station into a "world class" travel hub appeared to be in disarray today after National Express ditched its East Coast Mainline franchise.The transport operator agreed to pay 1.4 billion to the Government when it won the right to run the London to Edinburgh service, but was yesterday forced to default on the contract because of plummeting income.
The Government has already set up a publicly-owned company to take over from National Express when it ceases to operate the franchise later this year, and Transport Secretary Lord Adonis has promised there will be "no interruption" in services for passengers.
But a series of pledges outlined by National Express boss Richard Bowker – now departed for a rail job in the Middle East – have been thrown into doubt by the development.
When the company took charge of the franchise in December 2007, Mr Bowker promised a 180,000 station makeover and a new multi-storey car park with spaces for 1,000 commuters.
There were also plans to build a second footbridge over Bourges Boulevard to link up with the city's planned North Westgate shopping development, a scheme which remains in the pipeline.
Although funding for the proposals would have been provided by Network Rail, which is responsible for railway infrastructure, they formed a key part of National Express's successful bid.
City MP Stewart Jackson said the uncertainty over who would be running the franchise in the long term would have a negative impact on Peterborough and its thousands of commuters.
He said: "If there is no viable alternative franchisee for the East Coast Mainline, then what we are going to have is a period of lethargy and drift, because the Government will not want to run the railway long term.
"Peterborough has got to have a reassurance that there will be a quality operator in charge of the service, because the instability will not be good for travellers or for the city's regeneration."
Lord Adonis yesterday threatened to withdraw National Express's other franchises in East Anglia as a penalty for defaulting on its contract.
"It is simply unacceptable to reap the benefits of contracts when times are good, only to walk away from them when times become more challenging," the Transport Secretary said.
However, Peterborough's prospective Parliamentary Labour candidate Ed Murphy believes the nationalisation of the East Coast Mainline could prove to be good news for commuters.
He said: "Rail services from Peterborough should never have been privatised in the first place, putting safety and growth at risk to make quick profit for capitalists in the '80s.
"I hope that the growing call for public control is heeded."
Email to a friend
Print this page Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Local pages
Looking for a...
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Peterborough
Monday 06 September 2010
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 13 C to 19 C
Wind Speed: 24 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 10 C to 18 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: South
Your view
Please sign in to be able to comment on this story.