Refurbished trains and stations, more CCTV, improved timetables and more jobs have all been promised by the new rail company for Essex.
National Express Group today signed an agreement with the Strategic Rail Authority to operate the new Greater Anglia franchise.
It will take over all services previously run by First Great Eastern and Anglia, plus the West Anglia service, including the Stansted Express.
The Greater Anglia franchise will be launched in April and run for seven years with an automatic extension of three years, subject to achieving performance and service quality targets.
National Express has committed itself to providing Essex passengers by December next year with:
Six trains to London every hour off-peak
A direct service from Harwich to London every hour
Direct services from Chelmsford and Colchester to Norwich, Lowestoft and Ely
15-minute all-day London to Stansted service.
Dominic Booth, divisional director (south) of National Express Group trains division, said: "We are delighted to have been awarded this franchise and believe the changes we have planned will help deliver punctuality and reliability improvements for rail passengers in Essex."
Published Friday January 30, 2004
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article