urban genie
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- 11 May 2008
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The government announced that First, the majority partner in a joint venture with the Italian state operator Trenitalia, will take over intercity services on the London-Glasgow line from December which links with cities including Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool, has been run since privatisation by Virgin Rail.
The First-Trenitalia bid was chosen over a Chinese consortium led by the Hong Kong operator MTR, First’s partner on South Western.
Trenitalia has been named “shadow operator” for HS2, with responsibility for introducing new services but with a caveat that it may not go ahead.
First’s biggest shareholder, Coast Capital, has threatened to sue the board of the company if it took on any more rail contracts. James Rasteh, partner at Coast, told the Guardian earlier this year it would “hold each member of the management team and board member personally and fully accountable if the company enters any new rail franchise”.
The previous two UK rail franchise ran by First are TransPennine and South Western and have proved costly to the companyand earlier this year, First suggested it could turn its back on UK rail after the expiry of its current contracts.
Stagecoach who partnered up with branson were disqualified and are currently taking the government to court for damages.
This award to a company whose own parent company has said it doesn't want it and who are losing money on their other two franchises seems a bizzare choice.
But then this government is fucking useless
The First-Trenitalia bid was chosen over a Chinese consortium led by the Hong Kong operator MTR, First’s partner on South Western.
Trenitalia has been named “shadow operator” for HS2, with responsibility for introducing new services but with a caveat that it may not go ahead.
First’s biggest shareholder, Coast Capital, has threatened to sue the board of the company if it took on any more rail contracts. James Rasteh, partner at Coast, told the Guardian earlier this year it would “hold each member of the management team and board member personally and fully accountable if the company enters any new rail franchise”.
The previous two UK rail franchise ran by First are TransPennine and South Western and have proved costly to the companyand earlier this year, First suggested it could turn its back on UK rail after the expiry of its current contracts.
Stagecoach who partnered up with branson were disqualified and are currently taking the government to court for damages.
This award to a company whose own parent company has said it doesn't want it and who are losing money on their other two franchises seems a bizzare choice.
But then this government is fucking useless