06/12/2004

Inter city – railways ltd, a joint venture between the Virgin Group of Companies and Stagecoach Group plc, confirmed today (6 December 2004) that it has submitted its bid for the InterCity East Coast rail franchise.

The company, which was formed specifically with the objective of developing the East Coast bid, is one of four bidders shortlisted for the franchise by the Strategic Rail Authority.

The inter city – railways bid delivers significant benefits to passengers and taxpayers, including:

• innovative solutions to deal with the forecast passenger growth over the next ten years
• improvements to the level of performance of InterCity East Coast trains
• enhancements to passenger facilities at stations and on trains
• positive fare and ticketing opportunities for passengers
• proposals for closer working relationships with Network Rail and other operators

A key element of the bid involves inter city – railways making substantial premium payments to Government over the 10 years of the franchise.

Inter city – railways Bid Director Simon Bailey said: “We have worked very hard on this bid and have consulted extensively with stakeholders in shaping proposals that deliver excellent value for money.

“We believe that our track record in delivering record investment and improvements for passengers within our existing franchises puts us in a strong position to enhance services further for East Coast customers. We look forward to working with the Strategic Rail Authority during their evaluation of the bids, and to a final decision regarding the franchise.”

The company believes that operating the East Coast franchise alongside the existing CrossCountry and West Coast operations would bring considerable benefits to customers. An expanding inter city operation would enable greater flexibility in ticketing, allowing tickets to and from Scotland to be used on either route.

In the bid, inter city – railways fully embraces the Government Rail Review, and looks forward to the implementation of the new Railways Bill.

ENDS

Issued by Inter city – railways, ICEC Bid Office, West Wing Offices, Euston Station, London NW1 2DS

For further information please contact:

Notes to Editors

The Virgin Group of Companies:

The Virgin Group of Companies was established by Richard Branson in 1970 and now encompasses more than 200 companies around the world, operating in sectors ranging from transportation to financial services, mobile telephony, entertainment and retail. Virgin Group employs more than 25,000 people and its total worldwide sales in 2003 exceeded £4.5 billion.

Stagecoach Group PLC:

Stagecoach Group is a leading international transportation group, with operations in the UK, the USA, Canada and New Zealand. The Group’s businesses, which include bus, train, tram, express coach, and ferry operations, operate around 16,000 vehicles and rolling stock and employ around 30,000 people. In the UK, Stagecoach is one of the biggest bus operators and also runs the largest rail franchise, South West Trains. Formed in 1980, the company floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1993 and now has an annual turnover of around £1.3 billion.

InterCity East Coast

InterCity East Coast is one of Britain’s busiest long distance rail routes, which links London with several cities in both England and Scotland, including Edinburgh. The current franchise runs until April 2005. Bids for the new franchise had to be submitted to The Strategic Rail Authority by 1700 today (6 December 2004). An announcement on the successful bidder is expected from The Strategic Rail Authority in February 2005.