Alas - things appear to be going from bad to worse at National Express East Coast.
'A Conductor' writes in to say:
Thought you might be interested in the state of NXEC's new Information columns at York station, pictured on Saturday.
Installed a few months ago, they seem to be undergoing some sort of technical difficulty...
Presumably DafT will be using exactly the same form of words within a matter of weeks?
This just in from Driver Potter...
Perchance GNER is not dead, it does but slumber.
Potter, having attended his brothers wedding in Newcastle this last weekend, travelled to Kings Cross on the 15:50 Up service (1A53?) on Sunday.
I was astonished. If you believe the wibbling anoraks masses, NXEC have all but abandoned customer service. Potter begs to differ. The staff were nothing short of exemplary; prompt, courteous and all questions answered quickly with a smile.
I once mourned the loss of GNER - the blue and red, "Route of the Flying Scotsman", named locomotives and staff with pride. Now I see that perhaps I was wrong to worry.
All NXEC have done is change the livery and the uniforms; the pride remains unchanged. And even not knowing what the future brings has not dented the professionalism on the East Coast.
FC, would you be good enough to post this on your rather fine site? We hear enough wibble about poor customer service. Fine efforts should not go unsung; especially from staff who face an uncertain few months ahead.
Not so much rowing back, more the full 60 knot reversal!
Theresa Villiers (Shadow Secretary of State for Transport)
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when his Department plans to begin the pre-qualification process for invitations to tender for the Inter-City East Coast franchise.
Chris Mole (Parliamentary Under-Secretary)
In the event that a state company takes on responsibility for the inter city east coast services later this year, the Department for Transport will consult on a new franchise specification with a view to issuing an invitation to tender in the summer of 2010.
"In the event"!?!
Why, suddenly, has an element of doubt crept into the proceedings?
UPDATE: This from The Archer...
As DafT are supremely confident that they can enforce Cross Default it's possible that NatEx have waved the white flag.
So expect an announcement soon on the date of their exit from East Coast.
And perhaps if they play ball DafT will let them keep the other two until 2011.
Telegrammed by Ithuriel
Has the erudite Gricer Lord finally lost the plot?
Lord Bradshaw (Liberal Democrat)
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the parent company loan obligations in the agreements for each of the current railway franchises.
Lord Adonis (Secretary of State, Department for Transport; Labour)
Details of all franchise agreements that are not deemed to be market sensitive are published in the Public Register at www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/passenger/public register.
Information pertaining to loan arrangements between individual franchisees and their parent organisations are a matter for the parties to those agreements.
Wait a minute.
These committed loan agreements are determined by his Department.
Had his Department thought that NXEC might need a bit more spare cash in case of hard times, it could have required NEG to provide a larger committed loan - as has happened with other franchises in the past.
So loan arrangements between franchisees and their parents are a matter for government and therefore the taxpayer.
Les aristos a la lanterne!
Telegrammed by Leo Pink
Good grief. How much faster does poor old Moley have to back pedal?
Here he is yesterday - eulogising the same bus bandits who reneged on their contracts - or not.
"Punctuality, which is passengers' No. 1 concern, has improved dramatically. It has risen steadily since National Express East Coast took over the franchise, with the moving annual average rising from 81.7 to 87.6 per cent. Daily punctuality levels are now frequently above 90 per cent., and several 100 per cent. days have been achieved."
"We have seen tremendous innovation on the route, with wi-fi being introduced first to 10 trains and then to the whole east coast inter-city fleet—I have ambitions to see that on the service that I use every week."
"Stations on the route have also benefited from substantial and sustained investment, with the quality of the facilities being offered being recognised at places such as Durham, which was declared station of the year at the 2008 national rail awards."
"Finally, we should remember that the inter-city east coast franchise is one of those rare breeds that return a premium to the Department, and that premium is reinvested in the railway industry. Events of the recent past may have reduced the premiums available, but we can still confidently expect a significant return."
The phrase 'Eating sh*t whilst smiling' springs to mind!
Telegrammed by Leo Pink
More brown trouser laundering by Moley.
"The hon. Member for Peterborough asserted that other operators have received revenue support sooner than four years into the franchise.
"It is true that the First Great Western franchise included a provision whereby revenue support became available after two years, but that was an exceptional arrangement."
So DfT never renegotiates franchise - except when DfT got the franchise specification wrong and First Group have us over a barrel in which case it is an 'exceptional arrangement'.
Telegrammed by Ithuriel
When and if NXEC runs out of committed money and NatEx hands back the keys, it also gives DafT the £32 million performance bond.
Say it's going to cost DfT a couple of million to run its Holting (geddit) company until Inter-City East coast is re-let again, that 30 million will come in very handy when it comes to collaring FGW's revenue shortfall which is going to be well north of £60m in the current financial year.
How fortunate that DfT Rail's policy of not renegotiating franchises didn't apply to FGW when cap and collar was brought forward by two years.
Telegrammed by Ithuriel
A very mixed economy.
Mr. Robert Goodwill (Scarborough and Whitby) (Con): National Express got no brownie points at all when it recently introduced a £2.50 each-way seat reservation charge. That discriminates against elderly people who cannot run the risk of standing on the train and families who wish to travel together. Will he prevail on the new interim operating company to reduce this fare rise made by stealth?
Mr. Khan: The hon. Gentleman raises a very good point. That is one of the reasons why Labour Members believe in regulating. When we re-tender the contract, we will ensure that such things do not happen, instead of allowing the market to dictate what happens on trains.
So much for private sector entrepreneurial flair!
This just in from '20 year commuter'...
The service deterioration on National Express East Coast has been well documented by Eye.
But now it looks like hand-back mode has really kicked in as 'Adonis-Dunkers’ have now started gracing first class tables.
In recent months hard-working but weary travellers on the East Coast have been treated to 25g of tasty biscuit delight, courtesy of Walkers (the biccie people not the crisp purveyors).
The normal twin biscuit bonanza offered passengers such sumptuous flavours as Belgian chocolate, oat crunch, stem ginger and the classic shortbread.
Alas, this week they seem to be getting fewer and further between as the cheaper Walkers ‘shortbread mini round’ (at a very mini 11g) takes over.
Woe is me – not enough biccie to dunk in the tea!
UPDATE: The Major crumbles:
Some passengers may be seeing smaller biscuits, others are seeing none whatsoever.
Here's hoping Elaine does biscuits...
This from the Daily Telegraph...
Japanese railway workers face enforced "smile scans" every morning in a bid to boost their customer services, it has been claimed.
Apparently Lord Adonis is very interested in this new technology and is keen to to see its use mandated in future franchise agreements.
Eye understands that a top secret trial of the machine took place at King's Cross as recently as last Wednesday.
The manufacturers have assured the noble Lord that it can be repaired.
***For newbies to the railway The FT has a very helpful primer on what today's announcement does and doesn't mean***
It looks as if Richard Bowker will be right at home running railways in the United Arab Emirates.
Regular NXEC customers will instantly recognise the similarity between these UAE trains and the pared to the bone offering now available on the former 'Route of the Flying Scotsman'.
Perhaps The Fact Compiler is being a little unfair.
Passengers aboard UAE trains probably receive a second helping of biscuits.
A bit later than expected Virgin has indeed stated that it wants to run the ECML franchise.
Honestly, Beardie Rail would attend the opening of an envelope.
***Eye readers with a wireless, or internet connection, may wish to tune into "You and Yours" now, on Radio 4, where Nigel Harris will be ruminating on NXEC's collapse***
The BBC's Robert Peston exposes NatEx's limited East Coast exposure.
National Express, has very limited financial exposure to the losses being incurred by NXEC, the holder of the East Coast franchise - and believes it can hand back the franchise to the government with near impunity.
As Shriti Vadera observed, TOC's are "thinly capitalised equity profiteers of the worst kind".
When National Express East Coast is brought back under state control the franchise will be run by the "Operator of Last Resort".
DafT put out an OJEU inviting organisations to bid for this role several months ago.
The contract is currently held by First Class Partnerships and was retendered, as is standard practice, after five years.
As yet there has been no announcement from the Department on whether FCP have retained the contract or a new supplier appointed.
The initial OJEU specified that any Operator of Last Resort should be able to run up to two franchises concurrently.
This was subsequently pulled and reissued with the requirement to operate six franchises concurrently.
What could DafT have had in mind?
National Express statement relating to East Coast Franchise:
Discussions with the UK Department for Transport ('DfT') have not secured an improved outlook for the East Coast franchise.
As a result, the loss-making East Coast rail franchise will continue to be supported by National Express in line with its franchise support commitments until the committed funding is fully utilised, expected to be later in 2009.
In the event that the Secretary of State for Transport ('Secretary of State') reassumes control of the franchise, National Express would work with the DfT to ensure an orderly handover and ensure that passengers, services and employees are unaffected.
The Group does not expect that such circumstances would result in cross default of the Group's other rail franchises.
The DfT may take a different view on NatEx's other franchises.
Posts
