FOLLOWING a 10-day standstill period, the Welsh government appointed KeolisAmey as operator and development partner for the Wales & Borders franchise and South Wales Metro on June 4, confirming an investment of £1.9bn over the 15-year duration of the franchise.

THE Welsh government announced on May 23 that it intends to appoint KeolisAmey as Operator and Development Partner (ODP) for the Wales & Borders franchise and the South Wales Metro network.

BRITAIN’s secretary of state for transport, Mr Chris Grayling, has told Parliament that he has decided to take back direct control of the InterCity East Coast franchise from the Stagecoach-Virgin joint venture which currently operates the service as Virgin Trains East Coast (VTEC). This is the third time the franchise has been taken back under state control.

FIRST Group and Trenitalia have withdrawn from the competition to run the new East Midlands franchise as the partners seek to concentrate their resources on their bid for the West Coast Partnership (WCP).

BRITAIN’s secretary of state for transport Mr Chris Grayling announced in a statement to parliament on March 27 that vertical integration or a public private partnership (PPP) could be considered for the future operation and maintenance of High Speed 2, which will link London with Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds.

ITALIAN open-access high-speed operator NTV-Italo and Spanish national train operator Renfe have been granted permission by Britain’s Department for Transport (DfT) to participate in upcoming rail franchise competitions.

STAGECOACH, one of three groups selected by Britain’s Department for Transport (DfT) to bid for the new South Eastern franchise, has invited Alstom to join its bidding team. Provided the DfT approves the deal and Stagecoach wins the franchise, Alstom will hold 20% of the share capital of the new train operating company.

BRITAIN’s secretary of state for transport, Mr Chris Grayling, announced in parliament on February 5 that negotiations have been completed with Virgin Trains West Coast, a 51:49 joint venture between Virgin and Stagecoach, for a direct-award contract to continue operating inter-city services on the West Coast Main Line (WCML) for one year from April 1 with an option for a one-year extension.

BRITAIN’s secretary of state for transport Mr Chris Grayling informed the House of Commons on February 5 that the Department for Transport (DfT) is making contingency plans to take over the operation of the Inter-City East Coast (ICEC) franchise from Virgin Trains East Coast (VTEC).