Stagecoach Group and Virgin Group are joining forces with France high speed operator SNCF to bid for the West Coast Partnership rail franchise.
The government has announced that the West Coast Partnership franchise would run from 2019.
It would include current West Coast services and the first few years of operation of High Speed 2 (HS2) services.
Stagecoach had a 50% share in the bid vehicle, West Coast Partnership Ltd, with a 30% share held by SNCF and the remaining 20% owned by Virgin.
"It is envisaged that services under a successful bid would carry the Virgin brand," the companies said in a statement.
Let's parlez Franchise, indeed!