The prime minister criticised Britain’s underperforming rail network yesterday by suggesting that another private operator could lose its contract. Boris Johnson said that the “bell is tolling” for West Midlands Trains, which runs metro and intercity services. Andy Street, the Tory mayor of the West Midlands, said last week that he had lost all faith in the operator after delays, overcrowding and cancellations. West Midlands, which is run by the Dutch state-owned operator Abellio, has frozen fares this year to compensate passengers for poor performance. The government has already promised to terminate the contract held by Northern Rail, which is run by the German company Arriva, over timetabling problems and the late introduction of new trains.

Source: The Times January 09, 2020 00:11 UTC