Midland Mainline
This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2022) |
National Express | |
Reporting mark | ML |
---|---|
Predecessor | InterCity |
Successor | East Midlands Trains |
Other | |
Website | www.midlandmainline.com |
Midland Mainline |
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Midland Mainline
Midland Mainline took over operations of the franchise from the state-owned operator InterCity in April 1996. Originally intended to run for ten years, a two-year extension was awarded in exchange for greater investment into new rolling stock and the provision of an hourly service to Leeds. To facilitate the Project Rio services, 23 HST power cars and associated Mark 3 carriages were transferred from Virgin CrossCountry to Midland Mainline. During February 2002, Midland Mainline ordered sixteen four-carriage and seven nine-carriage Class 222 Meridian trains, the first of which entered service in May 2004. These new trainsets allowed for several HSTs to be released to other operators, such as First Great Western and Great North Eastern Railway (GNER).
Midland Mainline ran fast and semi-fast passenger services from
History
The Midland Mainline franchise was awarded by the
During May 1999, Midland Mainline was able to extend its sphere of operation following the delivery of additional rolling stock. In August 2000, the Shadow Strategic Rail Authority awarded a two-year extension in return for National Express committing itself to certain investments in the franchise, which included the ordering of new rolling stock and the running of an hourly service to Leeds.[4]
Service patterns
The off peak service pattern, upon conclusion of the franchise in November 2007, consisted of four departures per hour from London St Pancras. There were two fast and two semi-fast trains per hour.
Limited services
Midland Mainline operated a limited service between
In July 1996, a bus service between Kettering and Corby was introduced.[7][full citation needed]
From May 1999, a small number of through trains from St Pancras to
From May 2000, through trains between St Pancras and
A small number of trains operated between St Pancras and Sheffield via Nottingham and along the Erewash Valley Line to Chesterfield serving Langley Mill and Alfreton.[5]
Project Rio
From May 2003 until September 2004, Midland Mainline operated an hourly service between
The service used the
Named trains
- The Robin Hoodon the 06:30 Sheffield to St Pancras via Nottingham, and returning as the 17:00 St Pancras to Nottingham.
- The Master Cutleron the 06:14 Leeds to St Pancras which runs non stop from Chesterfield, and 16:55 St Pancras to Leeds return.
- The Midlands Express on the 07:05 Sheffield to St Pancras.[5]
Rolling stock
Midland Mainline inherited a fleet of High Speed Trains from British Rail. Enhancements were carried out to the power cars of the HSTs, most notably a revised lighting cluster.[citation needed]
In April 1997, Midland Mainline ordered 13 (later expanded to 17) Class 170 Turbostars to operate stopping services.[12] Originally, all were ordered as two-carriage sets before it was decided to increase 10 to three-carriage sets. During May 1999, the first Class 170 entered service with the operator; the type's arrival permitted a new timetable with increased frequencies to be introduced, in which the Class 170s operated the majority of the stops south of Leicester, allowing the HSTs to be better used on the longer-distance services.[citation needed]
To cover for a shortage of HSTs, Midland Mainline hired two
During February 2002, Midland Mainline ordered sixteen four-carriage and seven nine-carriage
As the nine-carriage Meridians were lightly loaded while the four-carriage sets were overcrowded, it was decided in 2006 to reduce all of the nine-carriage sets to eight carriages, the removed carriages then being used to extend seven of the four-carriage sets to five carriages.[20] A further reconfiguration of the Meridians took place in 2008, shortly after East Midlands Trains took over Midland Mainline's services, when six of the eight-carriage sets were reduced to seven carriages and the remaining set was reduced to five carriages, allowing all nine of the remaining four-carriage sets to be extended to five carriages.[21]
To operate the Project Rio services to Manchester Piccadilly, 23 HST power cars and associated Mark 3 carriages were transferred from Virgin CrossCountry in May 2003.[22][full citation needed] Whilst these were undergoing overhaul, a First Great Western HST was hired from May 2003 until February 2004. [23][full citation needed] When Project Rio concluded in September 2004, some sets were transferred to First Great Western and GNER, while others went into storage.[11]
Midland Mainline's fleet consisted of the following trains at the time they ceased operating:
Final fleet
Class | Image | Type | Top speed | Quantity | Routes operated | Built | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
mph | km/h | ||||||
Class 43 | Diesel locomotive | 125 | 200 | 31 | Midland Main Line | 1976–1982 | |
Class 222 Meridian | Diesel multiple unit | 23 | 2003–2005 | ||||
Mark 3 carriage | Passenger carriage
|
1975–1982 |
Previous fleet
Class | Image | Type | Top speed | Quantity | Routes operated | Built | Left fleet | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
mph | km/h | |||||||
Class 170 Turbostar | Diesel multiple unit | 100 | 160 | 17 | Midland Main Line | 1999 | 2004 |
Stations
- Midland Mainline operated at twenty-seven stations, of which it managed eight:[5]
- Other stations served included:[5]
- Stations which used to be served but then had their Midland Mainline services stop before the franchise ended:
Duffield, Ambergate, Whatstandwell, Cromford, Matlock Bath, Matlock, Stockport, Manchester Piccadilly.
Depot
Midland Mainline's HSTs were maintained at
Demise
As part of a redrawing of the rail franchise map from November 2007, the Midland Mainline franchise was combined with some Central Trains services into a new East Midlands franchise.[24]
In September 2006, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced that National Express, Arriva, FirstGroup and Stagecoach had been shortlisted to bid for the new franchise.[25][26] In June 2007, the DfT awarded the franchise to Stagecoach, with the services operated by Midland Mainline transferring to East Midlands Trains on 11 November 2007.[27][28]
References
- ^ "Company no. 3007934: Midland Main Line Limited". Companies House. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
- ^ a b Poole, Fiona (30 May 1997). "The Privatised Railway: Research Paper 97/71" (PDF). House of Commons Library. p. 49.
- ^ "Undertakings from National Express group accepted in follow-up to MMC" (PDF). assets.publishing.service.gov.uk. 17 December 1997.
- ^ "Statement re Midland Mainline". Shadow Strategic Rail Authority. 10 August 2000.
- ^ a b c d e f National Rail Timetable 20 May - 8 December 2007 Network Rail
- ^ Rail Magazine. No. 355. 21 April 2001.
- ^ "MML re-launches". The Railway Magazine. October 1996. p. 8.
- ^ Rail Magazine. No. 384. 14 June 2000. p. 4.
- Rail Magazine. No. 502. 8 December 2004. p. 36.
- ^ "Project Rio: Network Licence Conditions 12 and 13 - Consent of the Regulator" (PDF). Office of the Rail Regulator. 16 May 2003.
- ^ a b Privatisation 1993 - 2005 125 Group
- ^ "14 October 1997 - Midland Mainline orders more trains". National Express. 14 October 1997.
- Rail Magazine. No. 430. 6 March 2002. p. 12.)
{{cite magazine}}
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(help - Rail Magazine. No. 447. 30 October 2002. p. 55.)
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(help - ^ "Rail firm orders 23 new trains". BBC News. 14 February 2002. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
- Rail Magazine. No. 489. 9 June 2004. p. 6.)
{{cite magazine}}
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(help - ^ "New train fleet left sitting idle". BBC News. 29 October 2004. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
- Rail Magazine. No. 485. 14 April 2004. p. 12.)
{{cite magazine}}
: Missing or empty|title=
(help - ^ "Class 222 Meridian / Pioneer". Railway UK.
- ^ "MML creates eight-car Meridians". The Railway Magazine. No. 1268. December 2006. p. 8.
- Rail Express. No. 145. June 2008. p. 53.
- Rail Magazine. No. 465. 9 July 2003. p. 40.)
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(help - Rail Magazine. No. 463. 11 June 2003. p. 40.)
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(help - ^ "Central Trains franchise extended". BBC News. 2 April 2006.
- ^ "Hong Kong bid to run Midland trains". The Telegraph. 19 September 2006.
- ^ Davidson, Ros (19 September 2006). "Virgin prepares for rail franchise battle". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 October 2012.
- ^ "Department for Transport announces winner of East Midlands franchise". Department for Transport. 22 June 2007. Archived from the original on 11 December 2007.
- ^ "Stagecoach wins East Midlands franchise from National Express". railnews.co.uk. 22 June 2007.
Further reading
- Johnston, Howard (17–30 June 1998). "Midland Mainline makes it happen". OCLC 49953699.