Open access Lumo cracks the West Coast Main Line

The First Group-backed Lumo is just weeks away from achieving a milestone for open access operations in the UK. The bright-blue painted trains are set to run services on the crowded West Coast Main Line – already Europe’s busiest mixed-traffic route. The operator revealed this week its fleet of refurbished trains that will take a handful of rarely available train paths on the WCML and turn them into a coherent service, similar to the operator’s already successful timetable on the East Coast.

Lumo has achieved what has been something of a tough nut to crack for other operators. They have convinced the regulators that their plan for a service, between Stirling and London, via several underserved locations en route, is both commercially and operationally viable. Although the start date remains “this Spring” – Lumo has already committed to the West Coast, with the official opening of their new operations centre, right in the pivot of the line, at Preston.

Quart into a pint pot

Not since British Rail days, at the tail end of the last century, has there been a concerted effort to run a meaningful service from Stirlingshire and North Lanarkshire to West Coast Main Line destinations. Stirling itself has southward services, which, until Lumo begins operating, are all routed via the East Coast. Intermediate calling points – with the less familiar names of Whifflet, Greenfaulds and Larbert, will see a service that a generation will not have experienced. The service will run with a fleet of refurbished Class 222 diesel multiple units (DMUs), commonly known as Meridians. Alstom is carrying out the refit at its Widnes works near Preston.

Lumo’s success in persuading the regulator, the Office of Rail and Road, has been met with some surprise. It was only last year that the ORR rejected a raft of Open Access (not government subsidised) applications for services that would use the WCML – including other Lumo applications. The most pertinent reason is the lack of capacity on the route, especially on the southern section between Crewe and London.

Of all the applications, the Stirling-London proposal was the most promising. Lumo has identified four paths to make the service a meaningful travel option. It has not been overlooked that the epic saga of HS2 – the high-speed rail project currently under construction between London and Birmingham may, many years from now, radically change the picture in favour of more services on the existing WCML.

New centre for new connections

Constraints aside, Lumo has made as permanent a commitment to the West Coast as it can. The company has opened a new West Coast base of operations to service the new route. Around 50 VIP guests attended the official opening of the new rail base in Preston. It says that it will create around 100 jobs in the Lancashire town.

“This is a significant moment for both Lumo colleagues and the people of Preston,” said Stuart Jones, Managing Director of First Rail Open Access – the parent of Lumo. “We’re excited to be investing in our new base in Preston, which is creating jobs and supporting the local economy. We’re looking forward to becoming a part of the community here. We can’t wait to begin this new service between Scotland, the North West of England and London.”

Existing ops and refurbed trains

The soon-to-arrive open-access, low-fares service between London Euston and Stirling is likely to prove as popular as the company’s East Coast service out of London King’s Cross, which serves Newcastle, Edinburgh and a recent extension to Glasgow Queen Street – a routing that has proved valuable during the closure of Glasgow Central in the aftermath of the fire there. Heading north, the new route will call at Milton Keynes, Nuneaton, Crewe, Preston, Carlisle, Lockerbie, Motherwell, Whifflet, Greenfaulds and Larbert.

The use of DMUs ‘under the wires’ is acknowledged as not optimal, but the units are available and have operational life left in them. “This project is a fantastic example of industry collaboration, and our teams have worked proudly alongside Lumo and Beacon Rail to deliver a refreshed, high-quality fleet that enhances comfort and reliability for travellers,” said Steve Harvey, Services Director UK and Ireland at Alstom. “Alstom’s expertise is helping bring these trains back into service in a vibrant new livery, supporting both regional jobs and the wider rail network.”