Business
National Rail Contract for West Coast Partner...
National Rail Contract for West Coast Partner....
About this update from Firstgroup Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n \n \n\n\n\n\nFIRSTGROUP PLC \nNATIONAL RAIL CONTRACT FOR WEST COAST PARTNERSHIP\nFirstGroup plc (‘FirstGroup’ or ‘the Group’) is pleased to announce that a new National Rail Contract (‘NRC’) has been agreed with the Department for Transport (‘DfT’) for the West Coast Partnership (‘WCP’), which is a partnership between FirstGroup (70%) and Trenitalia UK Ltd (30%). \n \nThe WCP NRC comprises Avanti West Coast (‘Avanti’) and the West Coast Partnership Development (‘WCPD’), the shadow operator for the HS2 programme. Key terms of the new contract are as follows:\n \n\nThe new NRC will commence on 15 October 2023, when WCP’s current contractual agreement ends.\nThe contract is for nine years and has a minimum core three-year term to 18 October 2026, following which a further six years until 17 October 2032, subject to ongoing DfT approval. \nThe NRC is a management contract under which the DfT retains all revenue risk and substantially all cost risk. \nWCP will earn a fixed management fee of £5.1m per annum to deliver the contract with the opportunity to earn a variable fee of up to £15.8m per annum based on a number of criteria. Punctuality and other targets required to achieve the maximum variable fee are designed to incentivise the highest level of performance. Fees are also linked to milestones in WCPD’s programme. \nSince the introduction of Avanti’s new timetable in mid-December 2022, the operator has delivered a significant recovery in operational performance, and customer satisfaction. Over the last six months, cancellations that Avanti is responsible for stabilised at below 2% of scheduled services. \n \nAvanti is working through a £117m refurbishment programme for its 56-strong electric Pendolino fleet which is delivering a step change in onboard customer experience. Further improvements for customers have included the introduction of a new Standard Premium travel class, a new low-cost flexible ticket and initiatives to support customers who require additional assistance.\n \nFirstGroup’s ambition is to be the partner of choice for low- and zero-emission transport. As part of the new contract, WCP will continue to develop and implement initiatives to reduce its impact on the environment and, as such, Avanti has placed a £350m order for 23 brand new electric or bi-mode Hitachi trains. These trai...