Consultation on the next InterCity West Coast franchise, which starts in April 2018, began on May 10.
Passengers, businesses and local councils are being invited to give their views on the franchise (currently operated by Virgin and Stagecoach), with customer satisfaction, improvements to services and ways of making the railway more accessible among the factors highlighted by the Department for Transport (DfT).
Respondents are also being asked about aspects of the franchise’s service such as seating at stations and car parking, how they plan their journeys, and what they would like to see change.
The DfT says the consultation, which closes on August 2, will shape the Invitation to Tender, which is due to be issued later this year. The winning bidder for the franchise will be announced in November 2017.
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FrankH - 11/05/2016 22:26
More legroom in second/standard class would be nice, it's like being on ryanair, uncomfortable and cramped. I doubt you can squeeze more services into Euston. Add a coach to existing 390 sets maybe.
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Graeme Mulvaney - 13/05/2016 09:05
One of the suggestions has been to skip intermediate stations - I live in Coventry (100 miles north west of London), one of the cities likely to be bypassed under the proposal. We currently are an hour from London Euston, the proposals would cut trains stopping at Rugby and Nuneaton meaning I would have the option of a 60 minute round-trip up the line to Birmingham for a fast modern train or catch a smaller, and already overcrowded, suburban train via Northampton - adding 30 minutes to the trip. Stopping trains from calling at intermediate stations will shave minutes off journey times - it will do nothing to reduce congestion at Euston station, all that will happen is the local commuter trains will fill up with displaced long distance travellers. I don't travel to London at peak time out of choice - NOBODY DOES
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