ONE of the country’s biggest rail franchises will come under public ownership on December 12, with a new name and upgraded uniform for staff, it was revealed today.
National Express is handing back its East Coast main line business, which operates services from London’s Kings Cross to Edinburgh, after running up huge losses earlier in the year.
An internal Government briefing, passed to the Press Association by the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, reveals that ministers do not expect the franchise to be re-let to the private sector until mid-2011.
The date means the franchise will be run by the Government for at least 18 months, several months longer than originally expected.
The new publicly-owned company will take over services on December 12 and will be called East Coast Main Line, according to the presentation.
National Express logos at stations and on trains will be removed or covered, union officials were told.
New uniforms were introduced recently, but staff will receive new ties and scarves as part of the changeover.
Rolling stock will be rebranded East Coast "as cost effectively and as soon as practicable", according to the Government.
The document said rail services will remain the same and the most noticeable outward difference will be the change of name.
Profits will be returned to the public purse while the franchise is run by the Government, it was pointed out.
Bob Crow, general secretary of the RMT, told the Press Association: "Now that the Government have set out a clear timetable for renationalising the East Coast main line from December 12, RMT is demanding an absolute assurance that this will be a permanent move that recognises the chaotic failures of privatisation on this prestige route on the UK rail network.
"We are also demanding that the Government get off the fence and strip National Express of their two other franchises - C2C and East Anglia - under the cross-default clause. Anything else would be a reward for failure on a massive scale.
"We also want a clear recognition of the hard work and dedication of staff who have kept the East Coast main line running throughout the privatisation fiasco and an assurance that there will be no attacks on their benefits or working conditions."
