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 AClass 220Voyager on theSouth Devon Railway sea wall in July 2009 | |||
| Overview | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Franchise(s) |
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| Main region(s) | |||
| Other region(s) | |||
| Fleet | |||
| Stations called at | 120 | ||
| Parent company | Arriva UK Trains | ||
| Headquarters | Birmingham[1] | ||
| Reporting mark | XC | ||
| Predecessor | |||
| Technical | |||
| Length | 2,397.9 km (1,490.0 mi)[citation needed] | ||
| Other | |||
| Website | www | ||
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CrossCountry (legal nameXC Trains Limited[2]) is a Britishtrain operating company owned byArriva UK Trains, operating the current CrossCountry franchise.
The CrossCountry franchise was restructured by theDepartment for Transport (DfT) in 2006, incorporating elements of both theCentral Trains and theVirgin CrossCountry franchises, ahead of itsinvitation to tender on October of that year. On 10 July 2007, the DfT announced that Arriva had been awarded the New Cross Country franchise. CrossCountry is one of only two franchised train operating companies that does not manage any stations, the other beingCaledonian Sleeper. CrossCountry's services have been periodically disrupted byindustrial action amongst its staff, often due to disputes over rostering and pay. While the franchise had been originally due to conclude on 31 March 2016, multiple subsequent agreements have been enacted; in September 2023, the DfT confirmed that the franchise has been extended for a further four years for a finish date of 15 October 2027.
At the commencement of operations, CrossCountry's rolling stock consisted of 34 four-carClass 220Voyagers and 40 five-car and 4 four-carClass 221Super Voyagers fromVirgin CrossCountry as well as 11 two-car and 18 three-carClass 170Turbostars fromCentral Trains. As per its franchise agreement, it obtained tenClass 43 power cars and fortyMark 3 carriages to operate on services that required greater seating capacity, while some Super Voyagers were transferred to Virgin West Coast. Overhauls of the Voyager & Super Voyager fleets were performed, the removal of the shop to fit more seating and storage being a prominent change; the Mark 3 carriages were also refurbished to provide suitable amenities for modern travellers. Both the Super Voyagers and Turbostar fleets have been extended where possible to provide more capacity.
CrossCountry's network is centred aroundBirmingham New Street. It operates intercity and other long-distance passenger trains across Great Britain, but does not serve Greater London. It operates the UK's longest direct rail passenger service, fromAberdeen in the north-east of Scotland toPenzance in western Cornwall, which has a journey time of 13 hours and 15 minutes. While some services on theWest Coast Main Line were promptly discontinued with the introduction of a new timetable on 9 December 2007, with some transferring over to bothVirgin Trains West Coast and toFirst TransPennine Express, new services, such as a dailyNottingham toBournemouth service introduced during December 2008, were also implemented. CrossCountry has designated four stations as alternative changeover stations:Cheltenham Spa,Derby,Leamington Spa andWolverhampton. Special services have occasionally been run, such as betweenBournemouth andWeymouth in support of theSailing at the 2012 Olympics & Paralympics.
In August 2024, the thenSecretary of State for Transport,Louise Haigh, criticised the company's performance and threatened to take action if it did not improve, following its request to reduce its service levels in the new timetable.
During June 2006, theDepartment for Transport (DfT) announced its intention to restructure a number of the existing railway franchises.[3] As a result of these changes, a 'New Cross Country' franchise was produced, which incorporated the existing InterCity Cross Country franchise run byVirgin CrossCountry, while excluding those services ran on theWest Coast Main Line (while the Birmingham to Scotland services were transferred toVirgin Trains West Coast and the Manchester to Scotland services transferring toFirst TransPennine Express). Several services from theCentral Trains franchise were also to be added.
In October 2006, the DfT issued theinvitation to tender (ITT) to the four shortlisted bidders:Arriva,FirstGroup,National Express andVirgin Rail Group.[4] On 10 July 2007, the DfT announced that Arriva had been awarded the New Cross Country franchise, and that the services operated by Virgin CrossCountry would be transferred to CrossCountry on 11 November 2007, along with theCardiff toNottingham andBirmingham toStansted Airport services from Central Trains.[5][6]
After taking over the franchise, CrossCountry continued to operate the existing timetable including theWest Coast Main Line services for four weeks. When the new timetable commenced on 9 December 2007 on 11 November 2007, theBirmingham New Street toEdinburgh Waverley andGlasgow Central services were transferred toVirgin Trains West Coast while theManchester Airport to Edinburgh and Glasgow services transferred toFirst TransPennine Express.[7]
The ITT did not require retention of the services beyondGuildford after December 2008, so the services to bothGatwick Airport andBrighton soon ceased.[8] As a result of these changes, all CrossCountry services now completely avoidGreater London.
Starting in December 2008, a dailyNottingham toBournemouth service was introduced. From December 2010, a number of services fromNewcastle were extended fromReading toSouthampton Central.[9] From May 2011, a number of services were extended from Edinburgh to Glasgow to replaceEast Coast services.[10]
By mid-2020, CrossCountry had considerably curtailed its services in response to the significant decline of passenger travel amid theCOVID-19 pandemic.[11][12] From 15 June 2020, both passengers and staff on public transport in England, including CrossCountry services, were required to wear face coverings while travelling, and that anyone failing to do so would be liable to be refused travel or fined.[13][14]
While the franchise had been originally due to conclude on 31 March 2016, during August 2013, it was announced that it had been extended until December 2019.[15] At one point, it had been expected that an ITT would be issued in October 2018 for the next franchise,[16] but in September 2018 it was announced that the competition had been cancelled so that the recommendations from a report into the franchise system could be incorporated.[17] In July 2019, the Direct Award was further extended by one year, moving the expiry date back to October 2020.[18]
During September 2020, it was announced that the emergency agreements with train operating companies introduced due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom were to be extended for 18 months, and that allpassenger rail franchising in Great Britain was abandoned.[19] In October 2020, the DfT confirmed that the franchise had been extended for three years, putting the finishing date back to 15 October 2023.[20][21] In September 2023, the DfT announced a franchise extension for a further four years to 15 October 2027 with a chance of extension of an additional four years. The franchise deal includes the refurbishment of the existing fleet, the potential introduction of extra rolling stock, the return of regular services linkingCambridge andStansted Airport, and by December 2024 the reintroduction of daily services betweenCardiff Central andEdinburgh Waverley.[22][23]
During November and December 2017, CrossCountry on-board train managers and senior conductors affiliated with theNational Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) staged five 24-hour and two 48-hour strikes in an industrial dispute regarding staff rostering, in particular in relation to working on Sundays.[24][25][26][27] Further strikes had been planned for January 2018, but these were cancelled after CrossCountry and the RMT came to an agreement over staff working conditions on 11 January.[28]
Separate strike action was later threatened by theTransport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) union later that month, with strikes planned for 26 January. These were in relation to CrossCountry staff being offered a 1% pay rise, compared to a 3.3% pay rise for staff at otherArriva-owned train operating companies. As a result of an agreement with CrossCountry to match their demands for an equal pay rise, the planned industrial action by the TSSA was cancelled.[29]
CrossCountry is one of several train operators affected by the2022–2024 United Kingdom railway strikes, the first national rail strike in the UK for three decades.[30] Its workers were amongst those who voted in favour ofindustrial action due to a dispute over pay and working conditions.[31] CrossCountry was capable of operating only a very minimal timetable on any of the planned dates for the strikes due to the number of staff involved.[32][33]
In August 2024, theSecretary of State for Transport,Louise Haigh, criticised the company's performance saying she had "serious concerns" and threatened to take action if it did not improve, following its request to reduce its service levels in the new three-month timetable which is due to run from 10 August to 9 November 2024.[34]The company cited a driver training backlog as the reason for the reduced service. In a letter to the company's joint interim managing directors, Haigh said
Over the past year, the level of train cancellations across your company has increased significantly and by your own forecasts, you expected to breach your contractual targets for cancellations in the coming months. I do not find this level of service provision acceptable, nor do I find a three-month reduced timetable to be a satisfactory response. Given your inability to run a full timetable, and the need to provide clear information for passengers I had little choice but to approve this request. Put simply, the only reason I accepted your proposal was to give passengers more certainty on which services will run. If you fail to deliver the Remedial Plan, I will not hesitate to take further action.
— Haigh, Louise, Letter from the Secretary of State for Transport to CrossCountry about its train service performance[35]
 | Parts of this article (those related to the out-of-date service tables) need to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(September 2024) |
The company operates medium- and long-distance services that run outside of the London area. The network is centred atBirmingham New Street. Services can be categorised into two types:
CrossCountry's official website does show a distinction between the two types of services (for example, each has a separate timetable booklet), but does not explicitly call them Inter-City and Regional.[37]
As of December 2023[update], the Monday-Friday daytime services, with frequencies in trains per hour (tph), include:[38][39]
| South West to Manchester and Scotland | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Route | tph | Calling at | |
| Plymouth –Edinburgh Waverley | 1 |
| |
| Bristol Temple Meads –Manchester Piccadilly | 1 |
| |
| Bournemouth –Manchester Piccadilly | 1 | ||
| Reading –Newcastle | 5tpd |
| |
| Cardiff to Stansted and Nottingham | |||
| Route | tph | Calling at | |
| Cardiff Central –Nottingham | 1 | ||
| Birmingham New Street -Nottingham | 1 |
| |
| Birmingham New Street –Cambridge | 1tp2h | ||
| Birmingham New Street –Stansted Airport | 1tp2h | ||
| Birmingham New Street –Leicester | 1 |
| |
These services combine to provide higher frequencies between Birmingham and the following major destinations:
The Sunday service pattern is mostly similar to the weekday one, except that services typically do not start until late morning or early afternoon, and often have a slightly different stopping pattern. Several Bristol–Manchester trains start from Birmingham New Street on Sundays.[38][39]
The above table shows the basic service pattern; however, a small number of these services are extended beyond their usual destination:[38]
CrossCountry extended some of itsBournemouth services toWeymouth for theSailing at the 2012 Olympics & Paralympics. There were two services Monday to Saturday in each direction with one in each direction on Sundays. These ran express to Weymouth from Bournemouth. One train also operated a Weymouth to Bournemouth return journey, calling atWareham andPoole.[40]
During December 2016, CrossCountry published a consultation document for changes to the timetable proposed to be implemented in December 2017. These included:[41]
To allow these changes to take place, all CrossCountry services on some routes (which had a limited service) would be withdrawn and replaced with extra services run by other operators. These included:
In April 2017, it was announced the proposed changes would not be proceeding.[42]
CrossCountry does not manage any stations, although there are stations managed by other train operating companies at which it is the only operator: five stations (Burton-on-Trent,Hinckley,Narborough,South Wigston andWillington) are managed byEast Midlands Railway, while three stations (Coleshill Parkway,Water Orton andWilnecote) are managed byWest Midlands Trains. AtTamworth station, which has tracks and platforms at two levels, the high-level platforms are served only by CrossCountry, but the entire station is managed by West Midlands Trains, which serves the low-level platforms alongsideAvanti West Coast. Similarly, atWorcestershire Parkway, the low-level platforms are served only by CrossCountry, but the station is managed byGreat Western Railway, which serves only the high-level platforms.[citation needed]
Manea was served only by CrossCountry until 2013, whenAbellio Greater Anglia started running one train every two hours at the station in addition to the CrossCountry services there.[citation needed]
To improve the travelling experience, CrossCountry has designated four stations as alternative changeover stations: these are Cheltenham Spa, Derby, Leamington Spa and Wolverhampton. Connection times can be shorter at these smaller stations. For example, passengers travelling from Cardiff to Edinburgh could change at Cheltenham – where both their trains use the same platform – instead of Birmingham New Street, a larger, more complex station.
CrossCountry services are operated using diesel trains only, since none of the routes it operates are fully electrified.[citation needed]
CrossCountry inherited 34 four-carClass 220Voyagers and 40 five-car and 4 four-carClass 221Super Voyagers fromVirgin CrossCountry as well as 11 two-car and 18 three-carClass 170Turbostars fromCentral Trains.[43]
In December 2007Class 221Super Voyagers 221101 - 113 and 221142 - 144 were transferred toVirgin Trains West Coast with 221114 - 118 following in December 2008.[44]
A franchise commitment was the acquisition of tenClass 43 power cars and fortyMark 3 carriages.Midland Mainline had six Class 43 power cars and fourteen Mark 3 carriages that were off lease from November 2007 that were leased. The remaining four Class 43 power cars were ex Virgin CrossCountry examples in varying states of decay,[45] while the carriages were five ex-Virgin CrossCountry Mark 3 carriages and twenty-one ex-Virgin Trains West Coast loco-hauled Mark 3B carriages. Most had been in store atLong Marston for a few years.[46]
After driver training the ex-Midland Mainline sets returned to service in May 2008 onGlasgow andEdinburgh toPlymouth diagrams while the other Class 43 power cars were overhauled atBrush Traction including repowering withMTU engines[47][48] and the Mark 3 carriages overhauled atDoncaster Works to a similar specification asGNER'sMallard refurbishments.[49][50] Once these were completed, the ex-Midland Mainline examples were also overhauled.[51]
To operate services toPaignton andNewquay on summer Saturdays, twoHigh Speed Trains were hired fromNational Express East Coast in 2008.[52] High Speed Trains were hired from East Coast and East Midlands Trains on a number of occasions to operate services from Edinburgh Waverley to Plymouth when HSTs or Voyagers were unavailable.[citation needed]
During 2008, theClass 170Turbostar fleet was refurbished, during which the three-carriage units repainted at Marcroft Engineering,Stoke-on-Trent, the two-carriage units atEWS'sToton depot and the interiors renewed by Transys Projects,Clacton-on-Sea, including the fitting of first-class seating to the Class 170/5s and 170/6s.[53][54]
The tilt function on theClass 221Super Voyagers was removed in 2008; tilting was not required on the parts of theWest Coast Main Line that CrossCountry serves.[55][56] CrossCountry stated this change would improve reliability and reduce maintenance costs.
Between 2008 and 2009, both theClass 220Voyagers andClass 221Super Voyagers underwent refurbishment atBombardier Transportation'sDerby Litchurch Lane Works. This work involved the removal of the shop, adding 25% extra luggage space and fourteen extra standard-class seats to the Class 220Voyagers and 20% extra luggage space and sixteen extra standard-class seats to the Class 221Super Voyagers.[57] Three years later, a refresh of the interiors was conducted, during which the standard-class seats were re-covered in the existing red and blue moquette and while the first class seats were finished with a maroon moquette. In summer 2014, CrossCountry began removing the quiet coach designation from such vehicles across itsVoyager fleet, believing them to be outdated and to take up an excessive amount of space on a four-car unit; however, it did retain the quiet coaches on its five HST sets.[58]
During November 2017, as a part of CrossCountry's franchise extension, two former Virgin Trains Class 221 Super Voyager driving cars of unit 221144 were reactivated, having been stored atCentral Rivers TMD for several years. Two of the existing five-car sets released a centre carriage that, when combined with the reactivated pair of driving cars, formed an additional four-car set to be formed.[59]
In 2021, six of the existing two-carriage Class 170s were lengthened. This happened as a result ofEast Midlands Railway only leasing the two-carriage driving vehicles of the West Midlands Railway 170/6 sets, hence six centre cars became available when they were replaced byWest Midlands Trains for transfer to CrossCountry.[60][61][62][63]
In September 2023, it was announced that seven Class 221 "Super Voyagers" would be transferred fromAvanti West Coast to CrossCountry, following the withdrawal of its HSTs.[64]
In March 2024, it was announced that a further five Class 221 Super Voyagers would be transferred from Avanti West Coast. In addition, all of CrossCountry's Voyager trains will be refurbished, as well as its regional Turbostar fleet.[65]
| Family | Class | Image | Type | Top speed | Number | Carriages | Built | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mph | km/h | |||||||
| Bombardier Turbostar | 170 |  | DMU | 100 | 160 | 7 | 2 | 1998–2002 |
| 22 | 3 | |||||||
  | ||||||||
| Bombardier Voyager | 220Voyager | | DEMU | 125 | 200 | 34 | 4 | 2000–2001 |
 | ||||||||
| 221Super Voyager | .jpg) | 4 | 4 | 2001–2002 | ||||
| 23 | 5 | |||||||
 |  | |||||||
The last InterCity 125s were withdrawn on 18 September 2023. The last service operated was the 16:27 fromPlymouth toLeeds.[66]
| Family | Class | Image | Type | Top speed | Number | Carriages | Built | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mph | km/h | |||||||
| InterCity 125 | 43 |  | Diesel locomotive | 125 | 200 | 12 | 2+7 | 1976–1982 |
| Mark 3 |  | Passenger carriage | 40 | 1975–1988 | ||||
{{cite magazine}}:Missing or empty|title= (help)
| Preceded by Central Trains Central Trains franchise | Operator of New CrossCountry franchise 2007–2027 | Incumbent |
| Preceded by Virgin CrossCountry InterCity CrossCountry franchise |
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