[title]
Better trains, and more of them. That’s the simple request of many in the northeast, and that call has been getting louder over the last few years thanks to ongoing issues with LNER’s Edinburgh-Newcastle-London line.
Things appear to have brightened up in recent months for the north in general, with plans to run high-speed trains between Manchester and Liverpool, plus more trains from Birmingham to Manchester. Now, it’s the northeast’s turn.
Railway company Grand Central wants to ramp up its services in the northeast with more frequent trains, but that isn’t all. Grand Central also intends to buy new trains to fit the souped up schedule, which it hopes to start running as early as May 2025.
So what could change, service-wise? Grand Central has said it’ll run up to two extra daily return services between London and West Yorkshire, as well as introduce a new direct route from London to Seaham four times a day. This would be the town’s first and only direct connection to the capital.
To make this happen, the railway company says it will order a new fleet of Bi-Mode trains - that means trains that can run on both electric and non-electric tracks. These would replace Grand Central’s existing Class 180 trains, which have been running since 2000.
Before Grand Central does that, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), which regulates rail companies, would need to approve its application. In return for Grand Central providing more train options, the company wants the ORR to extend its Open Access Operator agreement from expiring in 2026 to 2038. This is what allows the company to buy up sections of track where they run their trains, and to operate without linking up to other operators like Network Rail. It also means that, unlike other train companies in the UK, Grand Central doesn’t receive government funding.
This is supposed to boost competition between the train companies and help keep ticket prices down. We’ll have to wait and see as far as that one’s concerned.
Trains and transport on Time Out
Are you a lover of railway lines? You’ll probably want to know how a huge £1 billion project will make train journeys faster between England and Wales, as well as which railway operator was ranked the best in Britain.
ICYMI: These major UK rail services will be massively disrupted for the next six years.
Stay in the loop: sign up to our free Time Out UK newsletter for the latest UK news and the best stuff happening across the country.