Partner Article

Train service knocked by lack of trains

The new train operator Grand Central is considering hiring in trains to maintain services between the North East and London. The firm began a daily service from Sunderland to Kings Cross in December, but delayed delivery of rolling stock meant it was unable to introduce a full timetable and had to cancel services.

Now the company says it may hire in some high-speed rolling stock on a short-term basis. The East Coast Main Line service, which rivals National Express East Coast, had hoped to introduce a full timetable by mid-January.

Tom Clift, managing director of the service, said: “We were hoping to introduce our full timetable of services this month, but unfortunately this will not now be possible because of further delays in the delivery or commissioning of vehicles from the organisations undertaking their refurbishment. “Frustratingly for all of us, these delays mean that we cannot at this stage accurately predict when we will have enough reliable rolling stock to introduce the full timetable.

“On a more positive note we would like to thank all those of you who have taken the time to contact us since we launched our services last month. We have had many, many messages of an encouraging and supportive nature about our trains, our staff and our excellent value for money. As with any start up there have been initial problems, for which we apologise, but the overall message we are getting from passengers is most definitely positive.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .