GNER Joins Virgin-Stagecoach Rail Bid

The management team in charge of running GNER trains on the UK East Coast Main Line could remain in place after the present franchise is scrapped, after agreeing a tie-up with Virgin Trains and Stagecoach.

GNER has joined the Virgin-Stagecoach bidding team, one of the four teams shortlisted to submit bids to run trains on the line from London to Leeds, York, Newcastle and Scotland.

The agreement comes only months after GNER was stripped of the franchise.

The Department for Transport (DfT) refused GNER's attempts to renegotiate the franchise after the train company concluded that its successful 2004 bid had been too high.

The train company's management agreed an interim management contract pending its replacement as franchise holder.

The DfT launched a fresh bidding round late last year, with National Express, Arriva, FirstGroup and the Virgin-Stagecoach group shortlisted to submit formal bids to run the franchise.

The deadline for bids is in June, with the DfT set to announce the successful bidder in July or August.

The new franchise holder is expected to launch services in the autumn.