Urgent question on Stagecoach's disqualification from rail franchise bidding
11 April 2019 (updated on 11 April 2019)
The East Midlands franchise has been awarded to Abellio, following a bidding process which saw current franchise holder, Stagecoach, disqualified from bidding.
Clive Betts, MP for Sheffield South East asked the government to make a statement on the reason behind this disqualification.
The East Midlands franchise runs services in the region, as well as commuter lines from Derby to London St Pancras and Sheffield.
- Watch Parliament TV: urgent question on East Midlands Rail Franchise.
- Read Commons Hansard: East Midlands Rail Franchise
Responding, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Department of Transport, Andrew Jones, said:
"With regards to Stagecoach, they chose to put in a non-compliant bid, which resulted in their disqualification in line with the terms of the published invitation to tender. That said, Stagecoach have played an important role in our railways and we hope they continue to do so, post the conclusion of the rail review."
Responding, Clive Betts said,
"The Government has promised improvements to the timetable - can we be assured at the beginning of the new franchise the timetable in terms of journey times will be at least as good and journey times at least as short as they were before the botched timetable changes of last year?"
Image: Christopher Hall via Geograph
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