Lord Adonis in 'Flying Scotsman' rail pledge
22nd January 2010
The transport secretary has vowed to introduce a new 'Flying Scotsman' rail service to cut journeys between London and Scotland to under four hours. Lord Adonis said he wanted to see speedy new trains on the East Coast line within two years.
He promised improved services on this and two other franchises run by National Express - Essex Thameside (c2c) and Greater Anglia (East Anglia).
His pledge came ahead of bids to run all three franchises from next year.
The government took over the running of the loss-making East Coast line from National Express last year, although it is intended to be returned to the private sector next autumn.
'Key business service'
Lord Adonis said there were plans for a new timetable next May and he wanted to see 10% more trains going into London in the morning rush hour.
He said: "I am particularly keen to cut journey times between major Scottish and northern cities and London.
"The standard journey time from Edinburgh to London will come down to four hours and 20 minutes, from Newcastle to London to two hours and 50 minutes and from Leeds to London to two hours and 10 minutes.
"I want to improve further on this by reintroducing the Flying Scotsman, with a journey time of less than four hours for the key business services between Edinburgh and London and back.
"I want to see the Flying Scotsman introduced within two years, and Network Rail have undertaken to facilitate this. "
Lord Adonis laid down requirements for those bidding to run all three franchises, including quicker and longer trains, improved ticketing and improved stations and catering.
He said Glasgow would also benefit from new direct services to Leeds and Sheffield.
A named, daily passenger service from London's King's Cross station to Edinburgh called the Flying Scotsman has been running since 1862. At present it is operated by East Coast trains, usually with an InterCity 225 train.
Last August, Network Rail proposed a new £34bn high-speed railway line linking Scotland and London by 2030.
The line would serve Birmingham and Manchester, getting passengers from Glasgow to London in just two hours and 16 minutes, the rail firm said.
Source: BBC