East Coast (train operating company)
Encyclopedia
East Coast is a British train operating company
running high-speed passenger services on the East Coast Main Line
between London, Yorkshire
, the North East
and Scotland
. It started operations on 14 November 2009.
East Coast is a trading name
of East Coast Main Line Company Ltd (ECMLCo), a subsidiary of Directly Operated Railways Limited
, formed by the Department for Transport
as an operator of last resort when National Express
refused further financial support to its National Express East Coast
(NXEC) subsidiary and consequently lost its franchise
.
The government temporarily re-nationalised the franchise and transferred NXEC's assets to Directly Operated Railways
, which would retain existing NXEC service levels, pending re-tendering the franchise in 2010, a date that has now been postponed.
East Coast operates long-distance passenger services principally from to Edinburgh Waverley via , and from King's Cross to , with other services reaching into Yorkshire
and Northern and Central Scotland.
Secretary of State for Transport
Philip Hammond
announced on 5 August 2011 that the new Inter City East Coast franchise would commence in December 2013.
and Doncaster
.
, Doncaster, Wakefield Westgate
and Leeds, while the other serves: Stevenage
, Grantham
, Doncaster, Wakefield Westgate and Leeds.
, Newark, Doncaster
, , Northallerton
, , Durham
and Newcastle. This train is occasionally extended to Edinburgh.
, calling at York, Darlington, Newcastle, and Edinburgh. Some of these trains also call at Peterborough
. Occasionally there is a half-hourly service to Edinburgh with some Newcastle trains extended. From 22nd May 2011 a new early morning service runs southbound, departing Edinburgh at 05:40, calling only at Newcastle at 07:03 and arriving at London at 09:40, called the Flying Scotsman. It is operated using an Intercity 225 set with 91001 with Flying Scotsman branding.
.
is not electrified. This route makes use of the historic Forth
and Tay
bridges. These trains are extensions to the hourly London to Edinburgh service.
is not electrified. As with the Aberdeen services, this is an extension of the London-to-Edinburgh service.
is not electrified. Much more frequent services between Hull and London are operated by Hull Trains.
, with one service per day in each direction as an extension of the London-to-Newark service.
As with the Bradford train, this is an extension of the Leeds–London service. Though the line to Skipton is electrified throughout, the East Coast service to/from the town was operated using a diesel HST because the electrical infrastructure on the Leeds to Skipton line was insufficient to support a Class 91 locomotive in addition to the class 333 EMUs (Electric Multiple Units) that operate the local services from Leeds to Skipton.
However, tests took place on 16 January 2011 for the operation of a Class 91 and Mark 4s on this service. From the timetable starting 22 May 2011, the evening return train from Kings Cross is worked by a Class 91 and Mark 4 set (Monday - Fridays only).
The Saturday run of the outward service is the only East Coast service out of Leeds not to call at Wakefield Westgate: from Leeds, this service takes the route via Micklefield and Hambleton Junctions on to the ECML to Doncaster.
to King's Cross also calling at Horsforth
(Monday to Fridays only). There is now a return service from London Kings Cross to Harrogate leaving at 17:33.
and King's Cross via Leeds.
diesel sets with their Mark 3
coaching stock (InterCity 125
), and Class 91
electric locomotives and Mark 4
coaches (InterCity 225
).
The original franchise holder, GNER
, undertook a major refurbishment of its rolling stock from 2003, which it titled "Project Mallard". Between 2003 and 2006, every Mark 4 coach in its fleet was upgraded and refurbished, while work started on refurbishing the Mark 3 coaches under GNER in early 2007. This work continued under NXEC, with the final InterCity 125 set completed in October 2009.
Until October 2010, East Coast offered free Wi-Fi to passengers in both first and standard class. From 5 October 2010, a charge of £4.99 per hour or £9.99 for 24 hours was introduced for Standard Class passengers, with a 15-minute free allowance.
As part of an overhaul of the Mark 4 coaches, the coaches and DVTs are being repainted from the current mix of GNER/NXEC
interim livery, to a new silver livery dubbed 'Silver link'. The repaint was started in June 2010 with the first full set (excluding loco) being released on 30 July 2010. The idea is that a plain base livery can be easily customised for any future operator of the franchise.
The decision to not run the planned two-hourly service to Lincoln, with instead just one service per day in each direction, means that the five Class 180 units are no longer required.
. The project will replace the Intercity 125
fleet with new Hitachi high-speed trains, and provide additional electic trains. The original plans would have also seen the replacement of the InterCity 225
fleet, but these will now remain in operation. By December 2018 trains are planned to be running on the East Coast main line in 9-carriage or 5-carriage sets.
DMUs. Due to a reduction in the number of extra services, and with Directly Operated Railways
stating its unhappiness with the Class 180 units, they are no longer required, and will not be used by East Coast.
East Coast investigated using one 11-coach Pendolino
from July 2011, but decided instead to lease an extra HST
set from East Midlands Trains
, in use from 22 May 2011 (though it has been used before, in a very mixed set as it was seen with East Coast 43206, East Midlands Trains mk.3s and East Midlands Trains VP185 engined 43074) bringing the number of HSTs leased to 14.
locomotives inherited by East Coast has carried various names
up until 2008. In 2011, in response to customer requests, East Coast resumed the practice. It began by naming No. 91109 as Sir Bobby Robson, unveiled in a ceremony at Newcastle Central Station
on 29 March 2011 by his widow Elsie and Alan Shearer
, patron of the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation
, which the company was also now a supporter of.
Train operating company
The term train operating company is used in the United Kingdom to describe the various businesses operating passenger trains on the railway system of Great Britain under the collective National Rail brand...
running high-speed passenger services on the East Coast Main Line
East Coast Main Line
The East Coast Main Line is a long electrified high-speed railway link between London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Leeds, York, Darlington, Newcastle and Edinburgh...
between London, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, the North East
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It started operations on 14 November 2009.
East Coast is a trading name
Doing business as
The phrase "doing business as" is a legal term used in the United States, meaning that the trade name, or fictitious business name, under which the business or operation is conducted and presented to the world is not the legal name of the legal person who actually own it and are responsible for it...
of East Coast Main Line Company Ltd (ECMLCo), a subsidiary of Directly Operated Railways Limited
Directly Operated Railways
Directly Operated Railways Ltd is the name given to a holding company set up by the Department for Transport in the United Kingdom. DOR took over the running of services on the East Coast franchise from 13 November 2009 and operates under the trading name of East Coast through its subsidiary East...
, formed by the Department for Transport
Department for Transport
In the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
as an operator of last resort when National Express
National Express
National Express Coaches, more commonly known as National Express, is a brand and company, owned by the National Express Group, under which the majority of long distance bus and coach services in Great Britain are operated,...
refused further financial support to its National Express East Coast
National Express East Coast
National Express East Coast was a train operating company in the United Kingdom, running high speed passenger services on the East Coast Main Line between London and Scotland, as part of the East Coast passenger franchise...
(NXEC) subsidiary and consequently lost its franchise
Rail franchising in Great Britain
Rail franchising in Great Britain was created by the Railways Act 1993. Passenger services are franchised, for a limited period, to train operating companies...
.
The government temporarily re-nationalised the franchise and transferred NXEC's assets to Directly Operated Railways
Directly Operated Railways
Directly Operated Railways Ltd is the name given to a holding company set up by the Department for Transport in the United Kingdom. DOR took over the running of services on the East Coast franchise from 13 November 2009 and operates under the trading name of East Coast through its subsidiary East...
, which would retain existing NXEC service levels, pending re-tendering the franchise in 2010, a date that has now been postponed.
East Coast operates long-distance passenger services principally from to Edinburgh Waverley via , and from King's Cross to , with other services reaching into Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
and Northern and Central Scotland.
Secretary of State for Transport
Secretary of State for Transport
The Secretary of State for Transport is the member of the cabinet responsible for the British Department for Transport. The role has had a high turnover as new appointments are blamed for the failures of decades of their predecessors...
Philip Hammond
Philip Hammond
Philip Hammond MP is a British Conservative Party politician. He is the current Defence Secretary in the Coalition government led by David Cameron, having succeeded Liam Fox on 14 October 2011...
announced on 5 August 2011 that the new Inter City East Coast franchise would commence in December 2013.
London–Newark/York
An hourly service runs between King's Cross and Newark, calling at all intermediate stations. This service is extended to every 2 hours serving RetfordRetford railway station
Retford railway station serves the town of Retford in Nottinghamshire, England. and is 223 km north of London Kings Cross and 28 km south of Doncaster on the East Coast Main Line...
and Doncaster
Doncaster railway station
Doncaster railway station serves the town of Doncaster, in South Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the East Coast Main Line north of London Kings Cross, and is about five minutes walk from Doncaster town centre. The station is managed by East Coast...
.
London–Leeds
The service between King's Cross and is half-hourly, with one train per hour serving: PeterboroughPeterborough railway station
Peterborough railway station serves the city of Peterborough, England. It is located approximately north of London Kings Cross on the East Coast Main Line...
, Doncaster, Wakefield Westgate
Wakefield Westgate railway station
Wakefield Westgate railway station is the mainline railway station for the city of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. It is located on the western edge of the main city centre, on the opposite side from Wakefield's other station, Kirkgate.-Services:...
and Leeds, while the other serves: Stevenage
Stevenage railway station
Stevenage railway station serves the town of Stevenage in Hertfordshire, England. The station is 27¼ miles north of London Kings Cross on the East Coast Main Line. Stevenage is managed and served by First Capital Connect...
, Grantham
Grantham railway station
Grantham railway station serves the town of Grantham in Lincolnshire, England and lies on the East Coast Main Line north of London Kings Cross.-Description:Junctions near the town also connect to branches to Nottingham, and to Sleaford and Skegness...
, Doncaster, Wakefield Westgate and Leeds.
London–Newcastle
A half-hourly service between King's Cross and operates for most of the day, departing from London on the hour and on the half-hour. The top-of-the-hour trains to Scotland run as limited-stop expresses between London and Newcastle (as seen below). The half-hour train calls at: PeterboroughPeterborough railway station
Peterborough railway station serves the city of Peterborough, England. It is located approximately north of London Kings Cross on the East Coast Main Line...
, Newark, Doncaster
Doncaster railway station
Doncaster railway station serves the town of Doncaster, in South Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the East Coast Main Line north of London Kings Cross, and is about five minutes walk from Doncaster town centre. The station is managed by East Coast...
, , Northallerton
Northallerton railway station
Northallerton railway station serves the town of Northallerton in North Yorkshire, England. The station lies on the East Coast Main Line north of York...
, , Durham
Durham railway station
Durham railway station serves the city of Durham on the East Coast Main Line. The railway station is managed by East Coast. Despite its small functional capacity the station is a principal stop on the East Coast Main Line and is called at by many intercity services travelling the route.The travel...
and Newcastle. This train is occasionally extended to Edinburgh.
London-Edinburgh
There is an hourly service from London to EdinburghEdinburgh Waverley railway station
Edinburgh Waverley railway station is the main railway station in the Scottish capital Edinburgh. Covering an area of over 25 acres in the centre of the city, it is the second-largest main line railway station in the United Kingdom in terms of area, the largest being...
, calling at York, Darlington, Newcastle, and Edinburgh. Some of these trains also call at Peterborough
Peterborough railway station
Peterborough railway station serves the city of Peterborough, England. It is located approximately north of London Kings Cross on the East Coast Main Line...
. Occasionally there is a half-hourly service to Edinburgh with some Newcastle trains extended. From 22nd May 2011 a new early morning service runs southbound, departing Edinburgh at 05:40, calling only at Newcastle at 07:03 and arriving at London at 09:40, called the Flying Scotsman. It is operated using an Intercity 225 set with 91001 with Flying Scotsman branding.
Glasgow
There is now only one direct through train per day in each direction between King's Cross and Glasgow Central as an extension of the hourly London-to-Edinburgh service. A faster and much more frequent service to Glasgow operates from London Euston via the West Coast Main LineWest Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...
.
Aberdeen
There are three trains per day each way between and King's Cross, departing 10:00 (The Northern Lights), 14:00 and 16:00, the journey time being just over seven hours. There is also one service per day in each direction between Aberdeen and Leeds. These services are operated by HST sets, as the line between Edinburgh and AberdeenEdinburgh to Aberdeen Line
The Edinburgh to Aberdeen Line is a railway line linking Edinburgh with Aberdeen via the Forth Bridge, the Tay Bridge and Dundee. Also it serves as an extension to the East Coast Main Line and the Cross Country Route...
is not electrified. This route makes use of the historic Forth
Forth Bridge
The Forth Bridge is a cantilever railway bridge over the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, to the east of the Forth Road Bridge, and 14 kilometres west of central Edinburgh. It was opened on 4 March 1890, and spans a total length of...
and Tay
Tay Rail Bridge
The Tay Bridge is a railway bridge approximately two and a quarter miles long that spans the Firth of Tay in Scotland, between the city of Dundee and the suburb of Wormit in Fife ....
bridges. These trains are extensions to the hourly London to Edinburgh service.
Inverness
A daily service operates between Inverness and King's Cross, departing at 12:00, called the Highland Chieftain. The journey takes just over eight hours and is operated with diesel HST sets, as the line between Edinburgh and InvernessHighland Main Line
The Highland Main Line is a railway line in Scotland. It is long and runs through the Scottish Highlands linking a series of small towns and villages with Perth at one end and Inverness at the other. Today, services between Inverness and Edinburgh, Glasgow and London use the line...
is not electrified. As with the Aberdeen services, this is an extension of the London-to-Edinburgh service.
Hull
The Hull Executive runs between Hull and King's Cross, with one train per day each way. This service also uses HSTs as the Hull lineYork & Selby Lines
The York & Selby Lines is the name given to a group of services in the West Yorkshire Metro area, connecting Leeds with places to its north and east: as well as the Northern Rail local services to York and Selby, the services extend to:...
is not electrified. Much more frequent services between Hull and London are operated by Hull Trains.
Lincoln
From May 2011 there is now a direct train from London to Lincoln CentralLincoln Central railway station
Lincoln Central railway station serves the city of Lincoln in Lincolnshire, England. The station is operated by East Midlands Trains, who provide services along with Northern Rail and East Coast....
, with one service per day in each direction as an extension of the London-to-Newark service.
Skipton
There is a morning train from and to King's Cross with an early evening return. is served towards King's Cross only.As with the Bradford train, this is an extension of the Leeds–London service. Though the line to Skipton is electrified throughout, the East Coast service to/from the town was operated using a diesel HST because the electrical infrastructure on the Leeds to Skipton line was insufficient to support a Class 91 locomotive in addition to the class 333 EMUs (Electric Multiple Units) that operate the local services from Leeds to Skipton.
However, tests took place on 16 January 2011 for the operation of a Class 91 and Mark 4s on this service. From the timetable starting 22 May 2011, the evening return train from Kings Cross is worked by a Class 91 and Mark 4 set (Monday - Fridays only).
The Saturday run of the outward service is the only East Coast service out of Leeds not to call at Wakefield Westgate: from Leeds, this service takes the route via Micklefield and Hambleton Junctions on to the ECML to Doncaster.
Harrogate
There is a Monday-Saturday morning HST departure from HarrogateHarrogate railway station
Harrogate railway station serves the town centre of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. It is located on the Harrogate Line north of Leeds railway station. Northern Rail operate the station and provide all passenger train services except a daily East Coast service to and from London Kings...
to King's Cross also calling at Horsforth
Horsforth railway station
Horsforth railway station is a railway station in West Yorkshire, England. It is on the Harrogate Line north west of Leeds station and the final stop in the Metro regulated area towards Harrogate...
(Monday to Fridays only). There is now a return service from London Kings Cross to Harrogate leaving at 17:33.
Bradford Forster Square
One train per day in each direction runs between , ShipleyShipley railway station
Shipley railway station serves the town of Shipley in West Yorkshire, England.Train services are mostly commuter services between Leeds and Bradford, the Airedale Line , and the Wharfedale Line...
and King's Cross via Leeds.
Current fleet
East Coast inherited the rolling stock operated by NXEC, comprising Class 43British Rail Class 43 (HST)
The British Rail Class 43 is the TOPS classification used for the InterCity 125 High Speed Train power cars, built by BREL from 1975 to 1982....
diesel sets with their Mark 3
British Rail Mark 3
British Rail's third design of standard carriage was designated 'Mark 3' , and was developed primarily for the InterCity 125 High Speed Train...
coaching stock (InterCity 125
InterCity 125
The InterCity 125 was the brand name of British Rail's High Speed Train fleet. The InterCity 125 train is made up of two power cars, one at each end of a fixed formation of Mark 3 carriages, and is capable of , making the train the fastest diesel-powered locomotive in regular service in the...
), and Class 91
British Rail Class 91
The British Rail Class 91 is a class of , electric locomotives ordered as a component of the East Coast Main Line modernisation and electrification programme of the late 1980s. The Class 91s were given the auxiliary name of InterCity 225 to indicate their envisaged top speed of...
electric locomotives and Mark 4
British Rail Mark 4
British Rail's fourth design of passenger carriages was designated Mark 4, designed for use in InterCity 225 sets on the newly-electrified East Coast Main Line between London, Leeds, and Edinburgh.-History and construction:...
coaches (InterCity 225
InterCity 225
The InterCity 225 is a locomotive-hauled domestic train in the United Kingdom, comprising a Class 91 electric locomotive, nine Mark 4 coaches and a Driving Van Trailer...
).
The original franchise holder, GNER
Great North Eastern Railway
Great North Eastern Railway was a British train operating company, owned by Sea Containers Ltd. It operated high-speed express train services on the East Coast Main Line from 1996 until 9 December 2007 when the franchise was taken over by National Express East Coast.GNER's primary service routes...
, undertook a major refurbishment of its rolling stock from 2003, which it titled "Project Mallard". Between 2003 and 2006, every Mark 4 coach in its fleet was upgraded and refurbished, while work started on refurbishing the Mark 3 coaches under GNER in early 2007. This work continued under NXEC, with the final InterCity 125 set completed in October 2009.
Until October 2010, East Coast offered free Wi-Fi to passengers in both first and standard class. From 5 October 2010, a charge of £4.99 per hour or £9.99 for 24 hours was introduced for Standard Class passengers, with a 15-minute free allowance.
As part of an overhaul of the Mark 4 coaches, the coaches and DVTs are being repainted from the current mix of GNER/NXEC
National Express East Coast
National Express East Coast was a train operating company in the United Kingdom, running high speed passenger services on the East Coast Main Line between London and Scotland, as part of the East Coast passenger franchise...
interim livery, to a new silver livery dubbed 'Silver link'. The repaint was started in June 2010 with the first full set (excluding loco) being released on 30 July 2010. The idea is that a plain base livery can be easily customised for any future operator of the franchise.
| Trainset | Class | Image | Type | Top speed | Number | Routes operated | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mph | km/h | ||||||
| InterCity 125 InterCity 125 The InterCity 125 was the brand name of British Rail's High Speed Train fleet. The InterCity 125 train is made up of two power cars, one at each end of a fixed formation of Mark 3 carriages, and is capable of , making the train the fastest diesel-powered locomotive in regular service in the... |
Class 43 British Rail Class 43 (HST) The British Rail Class 43 is the TOPS classification used for the InterCity 125 High Speed Train power cars, built by BREL from 1975 to 1982.... |
Diesel locomotive Diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railroad locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine, a reciprocating engine operating on the Diesel cycle as invented by Dr. Rudolf Diesel... |
125 | 200 | 30 | London Kings Cross-Aberdeen London Kings Cross-Inverness London Kings Cross-Newark North Gate London Kings Cross-York London Kings Cross-Leeds London Kings Cross-Hull London Kings Cross-Skipton London Kings Cross-Lincoln London Kings Cross-Harrogate Leeds-Aberdeen Newcastle-London Kings Cross Edinburgh-London Kings Cross |
|
| Mark 3 coach British Rail Mark 3 British Rail's third design of standard carriage was designated 'Mark 3' , and was developed primarily for the InterCity 125 High Speed Train... |
Passenger carriage | 125 | 200 | 117 | |||
| InterCity 225 InterCity 225 The InterCity 225 is a locomotive-hauled domestic train in the United Kingdom, comprising a Class 91 electric locomotive, nine Mark 4 coaches and a Driving Van Trailer... |
Class 91 British Rail Class 91 The British Rail Class 91 is a class of , electric locomotives ordered as a component of the East Coast Main Line modernisation and electrification programme of the late 1980s. The Class 91s were given the auxiliary name of InterCity 225 to indicate their envisaged top speed of... |
Electric locomotive Electric locomotive An electric locomotive is a locomotive powered by electricity from overhead lines, a third rail or an on-board energy storage device... |
140 | 225 | 31 | London Kings Cross-Leeds London Kings Cross-Edinburgh London Kings Cross-Glasgow Central London Kings Cross-Bradford Forster Square London Kings Cross-Skipton London Kings Cross-Newcastle London Kings Cross-York |
|
| Mark 4 coach British Rail Mark 4 British Rail's fourth design of passenger carriages was designated Mark 4, designed for use in InterCity 225 sets on the newly-electrified East Coast Main Line between London, Leeds, and Edinburgh.-History and construction:... |
Passenger carriage | 140 | 225 | 302 | |||
| Driving Van Trailer Driving Van Trailer A Driving Van Trailer is a purpose-built railway vehicle that allows the driver to operate a locomotive at the opposite end of a train. Trains operating with a DVT therefore do not require the locomotive to be moved around to the other end of the train at terminal stations... |
140 | 225 | 31 | ||||
The decision to not run the planned two-hourly service to Lincoln, with instead just one service per day in each direction, means that the five Class 180 units are no longer required.
Intercity Express Programme
The holder of the new East Coast franchise will participate in the Intercity Express Programme along with First Great WesternFirst Great Western
First Great Western is the operating name of First Greater Western Ltd, a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that serves Greater London, the South East, South West and West Midlands regions of England, and South Wales....
. The project will replace the Intercity 125
InterCity 125
The InterCity 125 was the brand name of British Rail's High Speed Train fleet. The InterCity 125 train is made up of two power cars, one at each end of a fixed formation of Mark 3 carriages, and is capable of , making the train the fastest diesel-powered locomotive in regular service in the...
fleet with new Hitachi high-speed trains, and provide additional electic trains. The original plans would have also seen the replacement of the InterCity 225
InterCity 225
The InterCity 225 is a locomotive-hauled domestic train in the United Kingdom, comprising a Class 91 electric locomotive, nine Mark 4 coaches and a Driving Van Trailer...
fleet, but these will now remain in operation. By December 2018 trains are planned to be running on the East Coast main line in 9-carriage or 5-carriage sets.
Cancelled Future fleet
Originally East Coast were to receive 5 Class 180 AdelanteBritish Rail Class 180
The Class 180 is a type of British diesel multiple unit train built by Alstom between 2000 and 2001 for use on then-new express services by First Great Western . They were built at Washwood Heath in Birmingham and are part of the Coradia 1000 family along with the Class 175. FGW stopped using the...
DMUs. Due to a reduction in the number of extra services, and with Directly Operated Railways
Directly Operated Railways
Directly Operated Railways Ltd is the name given to a holding company set up by the Department for Transport in the United Kingdom. DOR took over the running of services on the East Coast franchise from 13 November 2009 and operates under the trading name of East Coast through its subsidiary East...
stating its unhappiness with the Class 180 units, they are no longer required, and will not be used by East Coast.
East Coast investigated using one 11-coach Pendolino
British Rail Class 390
The Class 390 Pendolino is a type of train used in Great Britain. They are electric multiple units using Fiat's tilting train pendolino technology and built by Alstom. Fifty-three 9-car units were originally built for Virgin Trains from 2001 to 2004 for operation on the West Coast Main Line , with...
from July 2011, but decided instead to lease an extra HST
British Rail Class 43 (HST)
The British Rail Class 43 is the TOPS classification used for the InterCity 125 High Speed Train power cars, built by BREL from 1975 to 1982....
set from East Midlands Trains
East Midlands Trains
East Midlands Trains is a British passenger train operating company. Based in Derby, it provides train services in the East Midlands, chiefly in the counties of Lincolnshire, South Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Northamptonshire, and between the East Midlands and London...
, in use from 22 May 2011 (though it has been used before, in a very mixed set as it was seen with East Coast 43206, East Midlands Trains mk.3s and East Midlands Trains VP185 engined 43074) bringing the number of HSTs leased to 14.
Locomotive naming
The fleet of Class 91British Rail Class 91
The British Rail Class 91 is a class of , electric locomotives ordered as a component of the East Coast Main Line modernisation and electrification programme of the late 1980s. The Class 91s were given the auxiliary name of InterCity 225 to indicate their envisaged top speed of...
locomotives inherited by East Coast has carried various names
Nameplate
A nameplate identifies and displays a person or product's name. Name plates are usually shaped as rectangles but are also seen in other shapes, sometimes taking on the shape of someone’s name...
up until 2008. In 2011, in response to customer requests, East Coast resumed the practice. It began by naming No. 91109 as Sir Bobby Robson, unveiled in a ceremony at Newcastle Central Station
Newcastle Central station
Newcastle railway station , is the mainline station of the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, England and is a principal stop on the East Coast Main Line. It opened in 1850 and is a Grade I listed building...
on 29 March 2011 by his widow Elsie and Alan Shearer
Alan Shearer
Alan Shearer OBE, DL is a retired English footballer. He played as a striker in the top level of English league football for Southampton, Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United and for the England national team...
, patron of the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation
Sir Bobby Robson Foundation
The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation is a British cancer research charity which raises money to fund the early detection and treatment of cancer, and clinical trials of anti-cancer drugs...
, which the company was also now a supporter of.
Performance
The latest performance figures to be released by the Office of Rail Regulation rate East Coast's performance below that of its predecessor. Over the third quarter of the 2010/11 financial year East Coast achieved 81.7% PPM and a moving annual average of 83.3%.External links
- East Coast official website
- Department for Transport Directly Operated Railways
- Department for Transport InterCity East Coast franchise