A Virgin train at Central Station in Glasgow
RAIL workers have blasted the “same old privatised nonsense” ahead of a partly Italian firm taking over high-speed services on the West Coast Main Line this weekend.
Virgin Trains’ last Pendolino services will depart on Saturday night, after the company, a joint venture between Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and Stagecoach, lost the Inter-City West Coast franchise earlier this year.
In future, services will be provided by Avanti West Coast, a partnership of First Rail and Italian state-owned Trenitalia.
The HS2 debacle exposes what happens when public infrastructure is handed to private contractors – especially when set against China’s state-led high-speed rail success, says CARLOS MARTINEZ
On the eve of the 157th Trades Union Congress, MICK WHELAN, general secretary of Aslef, the train drivers’ union, celebrates victory in his campaign to get dignity for drivers at work
