Arriva Rail North - A

Arriva Rail North - A

Arriva Rail North, branded as Northern by Arriva (legal name Arriva Rail North Limited), was a train operating company in Northern England which began operating the Northern franchise on 1 April 2016 and inherited units from the previous operator Northern Rail.

A subsidiary of Arriva UK Trains, Northern was the largest train franchise in the United Kingdom in terms of the size of the network and the number of weekly services run. Its trains called at 528 stations, about a quarter of all stations in the country; of these stations 476 were operated by Northern. On 1 March 2020, Arriva Rail North Limited ceased to operate and all operations were handed to HM Government's Operator of Last Resort.

During the preceding Northern Rail franchise passenger numbers increased from 73 million to 97 million between 2004 and 2016 and as a result the new franchise was tendered on a growth basis, allowing for a £500 million investment in 101 new-built trains: the diesel Class 195 and electric Class 331.

Introduced into service in July 2019, these were the first new-build trains for the Northern franchise since the introduction of the Class 333 in 2001, with further orders possible if the new units encouraged passenger growth and improved passenger satisfaction. The new rolling stock allowed for the first Pacer trains to be retired in August 2019.

Since the franchise began in April 2016, it had been beset by worsening punctuality, perceived poor customer service, frequent industrial action by staff, and delays in introducing new rolling stock. The franchise was badly affected by the May 2018 timetable fallout and punctuality struggled to recover. The franchise was scheduled to run until 2025 and had an option for an additional year, which was dependent on performance.

The future of the franchise was first reviewed by the Department for Transport (DfT) in July 2019 deeming frequent weekend cancellations due to insufficient staff to be "unacceptable". It also voiced concerns about declining passenger numbers despite a 10% increase in timetabled services since the beginning of the franchise in 2016, and an unplanned subsidy increase from £286 million to £404 million following the May 2018 timetable fallout.

Conversely, Arriva contended that there had been "collective system inability", citing Network Rail's inadequate timetabling to absorb delays and the DfT's unwillingness to proceed with improving infrastructure which were part of the Northern franchise bid prospectus in 2014, such as two new "through" platforms at Manchester Piccadilly; these would have eased congestion through the Castlefield corridor and enabled the planned increase in services over the course of the franchise.

On 29 January 2020, it was announced that the Northern franchise would end early on 1 March 2020 - marking the first time a franchise has been removed from a train operating company due to poor performance since Connex South Eastern in 2003. From this date onwards, the franchise became directly operated by the DfT under the brand name Northern Trains with an objective to "stabilise performance and restore reliability for passengers".

Arriva Rail North History

In August 2014, the Department for Transport announced that Abellio, Arriva and Govia had been shortlisted to bid for the next Northern franchise. The franchise was awarded to Arriva in December 2015.
In May 2016, the Competition and Markets Authority launched an investigation into the transport department's decision to award the Northern network to Arriva. Arriva operated the CrossCountry franchise and owned many bus companies in the Northern trains operating area in which 'a significant overlap occur(ed) without competition from other service providers.

Arriva Rail North Penalty Fares

As part of the new Franchise Agreement agreed in 2016, the Department for Transport required the introduction of a penalty fare scheme across 60% of the Northern network by the end of 2019 and across the entire network by the end of 2022. The scheme aimed to reduce ticketless travel to less than 4.3% by March 2020 and 3.2% by March 2025. In April 2018, a penalty fare scheme under the Railways (Penalty Fares) Regulations 2018 commenced to encourage passengers to purchase a ticket before boarding trains.

As ticket machines at Arriva Rail North managed stations did not accept cash, a 'Promise to Pay' notice system (similar to the Permit to Travel ticketing system) was in operation. Customers who wished to purchase a ticket at an unmanned station of origin (i.e. either a closed, or no ticket office) with cash were required to collect a 'Promise to Pay' notice prior to boarding from a ticket machine.

These notices could then be exchanged with the on-board conductor or with a member of railway staff at the destination station for a paid ticket. Section 6 of the Railways (Penalty Fares) Regulations 2018 also covered a number of scenarios that prohibited penalty fares being issued such 'no facilities in operation for the sale of a travel ticket for that passenger's journey'.

Arriva Rail North Overview

Arriva Rail North Franchise(s): Northern

1 April 2016 – 29 February 2020

Arriva Rail North Main Region(s): North West

North East

Yorkshire and the Humber

Arriva Rail North Other Region(s): East Midlands

Staffordshire

Arriva Rail North Fleet Size: 386 units

Arriva Rail North Stations Called At: 528

Arriva Rail North Stations Operated: 476

Arriva Rail North Parent Company: Arriva

Arriva Rail North Predecessor: Northern Rail

Arriva Rail North Successor: Northern Trains

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