Free Wi-Fi pledge as London Midland wins rail extension
London Midland has won a new contract to continue operating train services in the West Midlands - which will see the company introduce a £13million package of passenger improvements.
Free Wi-Fi will be provided on trains, extra services will be put on and additional car parking at busy stations will be introduced.
London Midland was awarded the Department for Transport contract until October 17.
The contract includes putting on two extra evening services every weekday from London to the Trent Valley, providing an additional 2,300 seats from Euston each week and earlier services to central Birmingham on Sunday mornings from surrounding towns including Lichfield.
It is also planned to introduce new and upgraded ticket machines at selected stations, with new 'click and collect' and contactless payment options.
There will also be new targets to improve customer satisfaction and train punctuality.
London Midland said improvement worth £13 million are planned over the next 18 months.
It will also have to meet tough new targets to improve train cleanliness install CCTV on cross-city Birmingham services to improve security and equip station staff with tablets to improve the information given to customers.
The operator will also be required to work with the Smart Cities Partnership to introduce smart ticketing on trains, building on the existing Swift smartcard scheme, to provide seamless and more convenient journeys.
London Midland managing director, Patrick Verwer said: "Winning this contract is a great endorsement by the DFT of how London Midland is focused on improving our passengers' journeys. Since 2007 we have invested nearly £300 million in trains and stations.
"Over the last two years we have significantly improved performance – cutting both delays and cancellations. 12 months ago we delivered a further £60 million investment in 10 brand new trains. Last year we also introduced a new timetable, offering more seats and services than ever before into and out of major towns and cities and cut our Birmingham to London fares by up to 40 per cent.
"This new franchise offers some very exciting opportunities and will bring benefits touching every element of our passengers' journeys. It will enable us to continue delivering improvements for our customers and, as before, we remain committed to listening to our passengers and working with our stakeholders, communities and local elected representatives to make further improvements in the months ahead."
London Midland manage 148 stations and operate over 1,300 services a day. It is owned by Govia, the partnership between the Go-Ahead Group and Keolis.
David Brown, The Go-Ahead Group chief executive, said: "We're pleased that the Government has put its confidence in London Midland to continue operating the West Midlands franchise and also deliver further enhancements for passengers such as extra train services, free Wifi, better ticketing and additional car parking at busy stations. The plans offer benefits for passengers, taxpayers and the local communities that are served."
