On Sunday 28 May train operating company TransPennine Express (TPE) will transfer to being run by the Department for Transport’s Operator of Last Resort.
FirstGroup has been operating TPE and its predecessors since 2004, connecting communities and providing inter-city services between the North West, Yorkshire and the north east of England and into Scotland. During that time, passenger volumes have increased from 14m in 2004 to more than 29m before the pandemic.
Several new train fleets have been brought into service since 2004. A brand new fleet was introduced in 2006 with 51 3-car Class 185 trains, and the fleet was expanded further in 2014 with new longer electric trains in service on the Manchester-Scotland route, alongside an improved timetable.
TPE officially launched its new ‘Nova’ fleet of trains in November 2019 as part of a £500m investment to transform rail services on the network. The brand-new vehicles offer customers more seats, more luggage space and improved Wi-Fi. TPE has also invested in station improvements and accessibility, as well as opening new routes and stations across England and Scotland.
TPE’s services have played an important role in the government’s Northern Powerhouse vision, providing intercity connections across the region and supporting economic prosperity. TPE has also been a key partner in the significant rail infrastructure boost for the region due to be delivered by the Transpennine Route Upgrade, delivering savings to the taxpayer of around £120m to date through its involvement in project workstreams on access and rolling stock.
In 2021 TPE posted its best performance results for a decade, going on to win the ‘Best Operator Of The Year’ award at the Rail Business Awards 2022.
In 2022 TPE’s service levels declined due to circumstances not wholly within the operator’s control, mainly caused by the challenging industrial relations environment. This included the withdrawal of the longstanding industry-standard overtime arrangements running in parallel to unprecedented driver training requirements as a result of infrastructure upgrades. Following the introduction of an agreed recovery plan in February 2023, cancellations fell by approximately 40%.
Steve Montgomery, First Rail Managing Director, said: “We are very proud to have served the communities across northern England and into Scotland since 2004, carrying millions of passengers and introducing new trains, new routes and more seats for our customers. We have seen volumes more than double and I would like to thank our TPE passengers for their patience and custom during this time.
“Above all, I would like to say thanks to our TPE colleagues for their hard work and dedication to our customers. We are supporting the new operator to ensure a smooth transition for everyone as they prepare to take on TPE’s vital responsibilities for the North and we wish passengers, partners and employees every success for the future.”
Notes to editors
FirstGroup has operated TPE since 2004, in which time the following was achieved:
- New routes, including direct services from Liverpool to Glasgow and Manchester to Edinburgh via Newcastle.
- A number of routes were expanded including the Manchester Airport to Middlesbrough service which was extended to Saltburn.
- New stops were also introduced including those at Morpeth, Redcar, and St Helens.
- In May 2022 Reston station in the Scottish Borders opened and saw passenger service for the first time in fifty years.
- TPE invested considerably in a number of station improvements and refurbishments, including adding ticketing machines and help desks.
- TPE was awarded ‘Operator of The Year’ award at the Rail Business Awards in 2022.
- The TPE operation employs more than 1,600 colleagues across England and Scotland as at the end of the contract period.
- The TPE recovery plan which reduced cancellations by 40% included recruitment of additional train drivers, an acceleration of training on revised routes around engineering works and management intervention to ensure rostering is more streamlined and reliable.