Virgin takes ‘first step’ towards reviving West Coast services

Virgin Group has confirmed reports that it has applied to the Office of Rail and Road for open access rights on the West Coast Main Line. The move comes only days after FirstGroup, which owns the majority of Avanti West Coast, said it was applying to run open access services between Rochdale and London. Virgin’s plans are the most ambitious ever proposed by a potential open access operator, because it wants to run between London, Birmingham and Manchester, and also to Liverpool and Glasgow, offering hourly services to most of those cities and two-hourly to Glasgow. It would also serve Rochdale.