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East Coast
Directly Operated Railways Ltd (DfT)
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East Coast
nationalised operator: expired
replaced
< National Express East Coast
was replaced by
Virgin Trains East Coast >
start date
13 November 2009
end date
1 March 2015
owned by
Directly Operated Railways Ltd (DfT)
legal title
East Coast Main Line Company Ltd
description
East Coast was the second ‘nationalised’ franchise to be created since general rail privatisation in the mid-1990s (the first was South Eastern).
East Coast was returned to public ownership on 13 November 2009 (23.59hrs) because the last two private sector owners – GNER and National Express East Coast – had both withdrawn when they became unable to pay the premiums included in their contracts.
East Coast was treated as a standalone franchise as far as possible, although its ultimate owner was the Department for Transport via its subsidiary Directly Operated Railways.
service area
Long distance and regional services. London King's Cross, Leeds/York, Newcastle, Edinburgh/Glasgow, Aberdeen/Inverness, Hull.
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