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Avanti West Coast

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Franchise(s):

West Coast Partnership

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Other {{{nameforarea}}}(s):

Fleet size:

Stations called at:

Stations operated:

National Rail abbreviation:

Parent company:

FirstGroup (70%)
Trenitalia (30%)

Route map

Avanti West Coast is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup (70%) and Trenitalia (30%) that operates the West Coast Partnership.

During November 2016, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced the InterCity West Coast franchise would be replaced by the West Coast Partnership (WCP). In August 2019, the DfT awarded the WCP franchise to the First Trenitalia consortium. On 8 December 2019, Avanti West Coast took over operations from the prior operating company Virgin Trains, which had run the franchise since 1997. Originally, the franchise was initially scheduled to run until March 2030, and had also been set to operate the initial High Speed 2 services from 2026, before project delays moved its expected completion. However, during December 2020, it was announced that First Trenitalia and the DfT had agreed to terminate the WCP franchise at the earlier date of 31 March 2026 as part of the abolition of the franchise system; later revisions resulting from COVID-19 and poor performance shortened the contract expiry to October 2023 before being extended to October 2026.

Avanti West Coast provide the principal long-distance passenger services on the West Coast Main Line between London, the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland. Its services connect six of the largest cities in the UK: London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Glasgow, and Edinburgh, which have a combined metropolitan population of over 18 million. At the start of the franchise, the rolling stock used for these services consisted of 56 Class 390 Pendolino high speed electric multiple units and 20 Class 221 Super Voyager diesel-electric multiple units; in 2019, it was announced that the Super Voyagers would be replaced by newly built Class 805 bi-mode multiple units and Class 807 electric multiple units. Originally, Avanti West Coast was set to operate the pending high speed train fleet intended for use on High Speed 2, although the contract is set to end prior to the completion of this new railway as of 2023^[update].

History
- Background
Services
- Routes
Rolling stock

History

Background

In November 2016, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced that the InterCity West Coast franchise would be superseded by the West Coast Partnership (WCP). The principal change of the WCP was the inclusion of the High Speed 2 (HS2) services, then envisioned to start around 2026. Accordingly, the DfT required that bidders have experience in operating high-speed trains and the associated infrastructure, which led to all tendering parties either being, or partnering with, an existing high-speed operator.

During June 2017, the DfT announced that three consortia had been shortlisted to bid for the franchise:

FirstGroup (70%) / Trenitalia (30%)
MTR Corporation (75%) / Guangshen Railway Company (25%)
Stagecoach (50%) / SNCF (30%) / Virgin Group (20%)

In December 2018, the Spanish state-owned company Renfe Operadora joined the MTR-led bid. During April 2019, it was announced that the incumbent Stagecoach-led bid had been disqualified after it had proposed significant changes to the commercial terms, specially in regards to staff pensions. Stagecoach disputed its disqualification and launched a legal challenge to have it overturned. On 17 June 2020 the High Court ruled against the company and that the decision had been lawful.

In August 2019, the DfT awarded the franchise to the First Trenitalia consortium with Avanti West Coast to commence operations on 8 December 2019. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched a merger inquiry into the award of the franchise following a referral from the European Commission. In December 2019 it was announced that the CMA had approved the franchise's award; concerns that limited competition on some routes could lead to higher fares and less availability of cheaper tickets were offset by the agreement of price caps to be present in some regions.

Services

Avanti West Coast currently operates the same services as Virgin Trains did on the West Coast Main Line. However, over the course of the franchise, several timetable changes are expected to be made. It was anticipated that, from December 2022, an additional 263 train services would be run every week.

Unlike services operated by London Northwestern Railway and London Overground, the Oyster contactless payment card is not valid on Avanti West Coast services between London Euston and Watford Junction, as Avanti West Coast services are pick-up only northbound and set-down only southbound at Watford Junction. In February 2021, Avanti West Coast launched smartcard ticketing as a more convenient and environmentally-friendly alternative to traditional paper tickets.

Routes

As of December 2023, Avanti West Coast Monday to Friday regular intercity routes are as follows:

Route A – London - North West and Scotland via Birmingham
Route	tpd	Calling at
London Euston to Blackpool North via Birmingham New Street	2	Watford Junction, Milton Keynes Central, Rugby, Coventry, Birmingham International, Birmingham New Street, Sandwell & Dudley, Wolverhampton, Stafford, Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western, Preston Together with services to Glasgow Central, these form a frequency of 1 train every 2 hours, alternating with services to Edinburgh Waverley.
London Euston to Glasgow Central via Birmingham New Street	5	Watford Junction, Milton Keynes Central, Rugby, Coventry, Birmingham International, Birmingham New Street, Sandwell & Dudley, Wolverhampton, Stafford, Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western, Preston, Lancaster, Carlisle Together with services to Blackpool North, these form a frequency of 1 train every 2 hours, alternating with services to Edinburgh Waverley.
London Euston to Edinburgh Waverley via Birmingham New Street	7	Watford Junction, Milton Keynes Central, Rugby, Coventry, Birmingham International, Birmingham New Street, Sandwell & Dudley, Wolverhampton, Stafford, Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western, Preston, Lancaster, Carlisle, Haymarket Alternates with services to Glasgow Central and Blackpool North
Route B – London - West Midlands
Route	tph	Calling at
London Euston to Birmingham New Street	1	Coventry, Birmingham International 1 train per day extends to Shrewsbury, calling at Sandwell & Dudley (London-bound only), Wolverhampton, Telford Central and Wellington.
Route C – London - Chester and North Wales
Route	tpd	Calling at
London Euston to Holyhead	10	Stafford, Crewe, Chester, Flint, Prestatyn, Rhyl, Colwyn Bay, Llandudno Junction, Bangor One train per day has a dividing portion to Wrexham General. Three trains per day run to Chester. Three trains per day Holyhead-bound and one train London-bound also call at Tamworth and Lichfield Trent Valley. Two trains per day south and one train north run to Birmingham New Street, calling at Wolverhampton.
Route D – London - Liverpool
Route	tph	Calling at
London Euston to Liverpool Lime Street	1	Milton Keynes Central, Crewe, Runcorn
Route E – London - Manchester
Route	tph	Calling at
London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly via Stoke-on-Trent	1	Milton Keynes Central, Rugby, Stoke-on-Trent, Macclesfield, Stockport
London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly via Stoke-on-Trent	1	Nuneaton, Stoke-on-Trent, Stockport
London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly via Crewe	1	Stafford, Crewe, Wilmslow, Stockport
Route F – London - North West and Scotland via Trent Valley
Route	tph	Calling at
London Euston to Blackpool North	1tpd	Stafford (southbound only), Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western Monday–Friday only.
London Euston to Glasgow Central	1	Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western, Preston, Lancaster, Oxenholme Lake District (1tp2h), Penrith North Lakes (1tp2h), Carlisle Trains call at either Oxenholme Lake District or Penrith North Lakes

Rolling stock

Avanti West Coast commenced operations having inherited the existing Super Voyager and Pendolino fleets from Virgin Trains.

Current fleet

Class	Image	Type	Top speed		Number	Carriages	Built	Notes
Class	Image	Type	mph	km/h	Number	Carriages	Built	Notes
221 Super Voyager		DEMU	125	200	18	5	2001–2002	Set numbers 221101–118 Refurbished and overhauled. To be replaced by the Class 805 and 807 units in the future.
390 Pendolino		EMU			21	9	2001–2004	Pendolino (from the Italian word Pendolo) refers to tilting trains. To be retained long-term and refurbished throughout.

					31	11	2001–2004	Pendolino (from the Italian word Pendolo) refers to tilting trains. To be retained long-term and refurbished throughout.
					4	11	2010–2012

Future fleet

All the Class 221 Super Voyagers will be replaced by 23 new trains from the Hitachi A-train family with maintenance taking place at Alstom's Oxley TRSMD depot in Wolverhampton. These trains are to be divided into thirteen Class 805 bi-mode multiple units. and ten Class 807 electric multiple units. Although the units will have the same top speed, they will not tilt like the Class 390 Pendolinos nor the Class 221 Super Voyagers they will replace. The Class 805s are to be used for services to Chester, Gobowen and North Wales and the Class 807s are to be used for services to Birmingham New Street, Blackpool North and Liverpool Lime Street (alongside the Pendolinos).

Avanti West Coast had planned to operate at least 54 new high speed trains for High Speed 2 services, to be built by Hitachi Rail and Alstom in the UK and expected to enter service between 2029 and 2033.

Family	Class	Image	Type	Top speed		Number	Carriages	Routes operated	Entering service
Family	Class	Image	Type	mph	km/h	Number	Carriages	Routes operated	Entering service
Hitachi AT300	805		BMU	125	200	13	5	London Euston to Chester London Euston to Gobowen/Llandudno and Holyhead	Summer 2024 (Currently on Test)
	805		BMU
	807		EMU			10	7	London Euston to Liverpool Lime Street London Euston to Blackpool North London Euston to Birmingham New Street	2024
	807
Alstom/Hitachi	TBA			225	360	54	8	HS2 routes	2029–2033

Past fleet

In June 2022, two Avanti West Coast Class 221 "Super Voyagers", units 221142 and 221143, went off lease, and later transferred to Grand Central.

Class	Image	Type	Top speed		Number	Carriages	Built
Class	Image	Type	mph	km/h	Number	Carriages	Built
221 Super Voyager		DEMU	125	200	2	5	2001–2002

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