Virgin Trains could return to running rail services on the West Coast route between London and Glasgow five years after losing the franchise. It means that Virgin would be competing with Avanti West Coast, the train company it lost the contract to in 2019.
Virgin Trains had operated the service, which runs from London Euston via Birmingham and Manchester to Scotland, for 22 years before it was disqualified from bidding for the franchise. Virgin Group confirmed to the BBC that it had applied to the Office of Rail and Road, the regulator, for an Open Access licence.
Under this type of licence, a firm does not receive any state subsidies and takes on the risk of running a rail service itself. In contrast, a franchised operator, such as Avanti, holds a contract with the government to run the route.
A spokesperson for Virgin Group said: “While this application is just the first step towards exploring what might be possible, we think Open Access is the way forward.
“Open Access increases consumer choice and competition both of which Virgin has always supported.” Since taking over the franchise, Avanti has faced fierce criticism over delays and cancellations.
