Essex rail services to be run by c2c until September 2014

Date: 20/5/2013

Rail services in Essex will continue to be operated by c2c Rail Ltd until September 2014 after the National Express subsidiary reached an agreement on a short term contract with the (DfT) Department for Transport.

While the potential for the firm to maintain responsibility for the Essex Thameside franchise beyond the 16-month period has not been ruled out, the DfT has made clear that it wants to secure a long-term partner in the future.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin explained that the move is a "vital step" in establishing the DfT's refranchising programme, and that this is the first contract agreed between the Government and rail industry since the introduction of a revised franchising system in March.

"[The c2c deal] gives the industry time to develop their long term plans for the future franchise and confidence to passengers that services will continue for the next 16 months," he said.

"I am determined to ensure that when we let the long term franchise the operator delivers significant benefits to passengers and tax payers alike."

The short term nature of the contract is related to recommendations made by independent expert Richard Brown, who suggested that the Government needed to change its approach to rail franchising following last year's West Coast Mainline fiasco.

Mr Brown's proposals included the idea that no more than three franchises should be let each year, with the DfT now looking to implement a number of short term agreements with current operators in a bid to lay the foundations for a long term programme in the future.

Once the Essex Thameside contract comes to an end in September 2014, there is a contingency model in place that would allow the agreement to be extended by up to eight further railway periods, each of which would last for 28 days.

Posted by Mary Treen

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