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'{{about|the current train operating company|the future open access operator|East Coast Trains}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2017}} {{Use British English|date=May 2017}} {{Infobox Rail companies |name = Virgin Trains East Coast |logo_filename = VirginTrainsLogo.svg |logo_width = 200 |image_filename = Virgin Trains East Coast HST at Leeds (geograph 4704324).jpg |widthpx = 300 |caption = Virgin Trains East Coast [[British Rail Class 43 (HST)|HST]] at [[Leeds railway station|Leeds]] |franchise = [[InterCity East Coast]]<br>1 March 2015 – 24 June 2018<ref>https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/east-coast-mainline-government-renationalise-franchise_uk_5afc0c7ce4b0a59b4dff30c7</ref> |nameforarea=route |regions=[[London]] – [[Aberdeen]]<br>[[London]] – [[Edinburgh]]<br>[[London]] – [[Newcastle upon Tyne|Newcastle]]<br>[[London]] – [[York]]<br>[[London]] – [[Leeds]]<br>[[London]] – [[Newark-on-Trent|Newark]] |secregions=[[Leeds]] – [[Aberdeen]]<br>[[London]] – [[Inverness]]<br>[[London]] – [[Glasgow]]<br>[[London]] – [[Sunderland, Tyne and Wear|Sunderland]]<br>[[London]] – [[Skipton]]<br>[[London]] – [[Bradford]]<br>[[London]] – [[Harrogate]]<br>[[London]] – [[Kingston upon Hull|Hull]]<br>[[London]] – [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]] |abbr = GR<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/eNRT/May15/Commercial_Information.pdf |title=Commercial Information |work=National Rail Timetable |edition=Sunday 17 May 2015 to Saturday 12 December 2015 |publisher=Network Rail |location=Milton Keynes |issn=1367-0352 |pages=12, 20 |accessdate=5 July 2015 }}</ref> |fleet = 31 [[InterCity 225]] sets<br>14 [[InterCity 125]] sets |stations = 53 |stationsop = 12 |parent_company = [[Stagecoach Group]] (90%)<br>[[Virgin Group]] (10%) |website = www.virgintrainseastcoast.com |map = [[File:Virgin Trains East Coast vector map (May 2015).jpg|300px|Route map]]}} '''Virgin Trains East Coast''' (legal name '''East Coast Main Line Company Limited'''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://data.companieshouse.gov.uk/doc/company/04659708|title=East Coast Main Line Company Limited|publisher=Companies House|accessdate=29 December 2017}}</ref>) is a [[train operating company]] in the United Kingdom that operates the [[InterCity East Coast]] franchise on the [[East Coast Main Line]] between London, [[Yorkshire]], the [[North East England|North East]] and [[Scotland]]. It commenced operations on 1 March 2015, taking over from [[East Coast (train operating company)|East Coast]]. It is a [[joint venture]] between [[Stagecoach Group|Stagecoach]] (90%) and [[Virgin Group]] (10%). Originally intended to run until 2023 it was later cut back to 2020. In February 2018 it was announced that the franchise would be terminated in mid-2018 as a result of Stagecoach and Virgin failing to meet key financial obligations with the operation of the franchise, marking the third collapse of the InterCity East Coast rail franchise in eleven years. On May 16th 2018, this was confirmed by the transport secretary, with an announcement that the franchise would be transferring into the public hands,<ref>https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/east-coast-mainline-government-renationalise-franchise_uk_5afc0c7ce4b0a59b4dff30c7</ref> with the successor to be known as [[London North Eastern Railway (train operating company)|LNER "London North Eastern Railway"]].<ref>http://www.lnerailway.co.uk/</ref> ==History== In January 2014, [[FirstGroup]], [[Keolis]]/[[Eurostar International Limited|Eurostar]] and [[Stagecoach Group|Stagecoach]]/[[Virgin Group|Virgin]] were announced by the [[Department for Transport]] (DfT) as the shortlisted bidders for the new [[InterCity East Coast]] franchise.<ref>[http://www.bbc.com/news/business-25775802 East Coast rail shortlist revealed] ''BBC News'' 17 January 2014</ref><ref>[http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/passenger/single-view/view/intercity-east-coast-franchise-shortlist-announced.html InterCity East Coast franchise shortlist announced] ''[[Railway Gazette International]]'' 17 January 2014</ref> In November 2014, the eight-year franchise was awarded to the Stagecoach/Virgin [[joint venture]] and commenced operating on 1 March 2015 trading as Virgin Trains East Coast (VTEC).<ref name=BBC27Nov14>[http://www.bbc.com/news/business-30222458 Stagecoach and Virgin win East Coast mainline rail franchise] ''BBC News'' 27 November 2014</ref><ref>[https://www.gov.uk/government/news/more-seats-more-services-and-new-trains-for-east-coast-passengers More seats, more services and new trains for East Coast passengers] Department for Transport 27 November 2014</ref><ref name=RailwayGazette27Nov14>[http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/single-view/view/pound33bn-premium-wins-east-coast-franchise-for-stagecoach-and-virgin.html 3.3bn premium wins East Coast franchise for Stagecoach and Virgin] ''Railway Gazette International'' 27 November 2014</ref><ref>[http://railwaymagazine.co.uk/news/stagecoach-virgin-bid-wins-east-coast-franchise Virgin bid wins East Coast franchise] ''[[The Railway Magazine]]'' 27 November 2014</ref> ===Industrial action=== {{main|2016–2018 United Kingdom rail strikes#Virgin Trains East Coast}} Due to concerns over the planned introduction of driver-only operation by Virgin Trains East Coast, in addition to nearly 200 planned compulsory redundancies and staff pay concerns, the [[National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers]] (RMT) announced that three 24-hour strikes would be held by all workers (except depot maintenance workers) at VTEC in August 2016;<ref>https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/aug/12/virgin-trains-east-cost-staff-to-strike-in-row-over-jobs</ref><ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-37058849</ref><ref>https://www.rmt.org.uk/news/rmt-confirms-strikes-on-virgin-east-coast-after-84-vote-for/</ref> however, following negotiations between VTEC and the RMT, these were all eventually cancelled.<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-37101017</ref><ref>http://www.itv.com/news/tyne-tees/2016-08-16/virgin-trains-east-coast-workers-suspend-strike-action/</ref><ref>https://www.rmt.org.uk/news/intercity-east-coast-rmt-suspends-all-industrial-action/</ref> A further breakdown in negotiations between the RMT and VTEC resulted in the union calling for further industrial action, which took place for 24 hours on 3 October 2016.<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-37471302</ref><ref>https://www.rmt.org.uk/news/rmt-confirms-strike-action-on-virgin-east-coast260916/</ref> Further strikes were subsequently called, for 48 hours on 28–29 April 2017; however, this was again cancelled before it could take place following "progress" in talks between the union and the operator.<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-39698139</ref><ref>http://www.itv.com/news/tyne-tees/update/2017-04-24/virgin-trains-east-coast-strike-is-suspended/</ref><ref>https://www.rmt.org.uk/news/rmt-suspends-strike-action-on-virgin-east-coast/</ref> ===Financial problems and franchise retendering=== On 28 June 2017, Stagecoach made a loss when trades were down 11% due to the loss on the East Coast service and entered into talks with the government. The RMT called for renationalisation of the franchise, although Stagecoach was confident it could make a profit within two years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-40427369|title=East Coast rail line woes hit Stagecoach|first=Bill|last=Wilson|date=28 June 2017|publisher=BBC News|accessdate=13 February 2018}}</ref> In November 2017, the [[Secretary of State for Transport|Transport Secretary]] [[Chris Grayling]] announced that the franchise would become the first to have a public-private railway as part of reforms, and that as a result Virgin Trains East Coast will have its franchise terminate in 2020 to allow the new deal to take place.<ref name=guardian-20171129>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/nov/29/east-coast-rail-franchise-terminated-three-years-early-virgin-trains |title=East Coast rail 'bailout' could cost taxpayers hundreds of millions |last=Topham |first=Gwyn |newspaper=The Guardian |date=29 November 2017 |accessdate=2 December 2017}}</ref> VTEC had been due to pay more than £2 billion in franchise premiums to the government over the last four years of its contract.<ref name=ft-20171129>{{cite news |url=https://www.ft.com/content/cd4bf9c2-d51b-11e7-a303-9060cb1e5f44 |title=Stagecoach soars after government intervenes on contract |last=Elder |first=Bryce |newspaper=Financial Times |date=29 November 2017 |accessdate=2 December 2017}}</ref> In February 2018, the end of the franchise was brought forwards to "a small number of months".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/update-on-the-east-coast-west-coast-and-east-midlands-rail-franchises|title=Update on the East Coast, West Coast and East Midlands rail franchises - GOV.UK|website=www.gov.uk|language=en|access-date=2018-02-05}}</ref> The DfT will either negotiate a deal with VTEC to continue to run the franchise on a temporary non-profit basis while a new franchise competition is conducted or it will be taken over by the DfT's operator of last resort, a partnership of [[Arup Group]], [[Ernst & Young]] and [[SNC-Lavalin Rail & Transit]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Stagecoach to lose East Coast Mainline rail franchise|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-42945709|accessdate=5 February 2018|publisher=BBC News|date=5 February 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-42945709|title=Stagecoach East Coast deal to end early|date=6 February 2018|publisher=|via=www.bbc.co.uk}}</ref><ref>[http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/single-view/view/virgin-trains-east-coast-franchise-to-end-within-months.html Virgin Trains East Coast franchise to end within months] ''Railway Gazette International'' 6 February 2018</ref> ==Services== [[File:East Coast Main Line inter-city services.svg|thumb|300px|Typical off-peak Monday-Friday service pattern (including other inter-city services)]] Virgin Trains East Coast took over all of the services operated by East Coast. It categorises its weekday services from {{rws|London King's Cross}} into four routes:<ref name=route_map>[http://www.virgintrainseastcoast.com/globalassets/downloads/pdf/vtec-route-map-2015-dl.pdf Route Map] Virgin Trains East Coast</ref> {| class="wikitable" |- ! colspan="1" | !! Route !! Off-peak<br />frequency !! Calling at (off-peak) !! Peak-time extensions |- |style="background:#19A438; color:White" width="16px" | <big><big><big>'''A'''</big></big></big> || {{rws|London King's Cross}} to {{rws|Leeds}} (and West Yorkshire) || 2tph || 1tph: {{rws|Peterborough}}, {{rws|Doncaster}}, {{rws|Wakefield Westgate}}<br />1tph: {{rws|Stevenage}}, {{rws|Grantham}}, {{rws|Doncaster}}, {{rws|Wakefield Westgate}} || 1tpd to {{rws|Skipton}} via {{rws|Keighley}}<br />1tpd to {{rws|Bradford Forster Square}} via {{rws|Shipley}}<br />1tpd to {{rws|Harrogate}} via {{rws|Horsforth}} |- | style="background:#8D2E88; color:White" width="16px" | <big><big><big>'''B'''</big></big></big> ||{{rws|London King's Cross}} to [[Edinburgh Waverley railway station|Edinburgh]] (express) || 1tph || {{rws|York}}, {{rws|Darlington}}, {{rws|Newcastle}}, {{rws|Berwick-upon-Tweed}} || 1tpd to {{rws|Inverness}}<br />1tpd to [[Stirling railway station, Scotland|Stirling]]<br />4tpd to {{rws|Aberdeen}} (3 from London King's Cross, 1 from Leeds) |- |style="background:#F29104; color:White" width="16px" | <big><big><big>'''C'''</big></big></big> || {{rws|London King's Cross}} to [[Edinburgh Waverley railway station|Edinburgh]] (semi-fast) || 1tph || {{rws|Peterborough}}, {{rws|Newark North Gate}}, {{rws|Doncaster}}, {{rws|York}}, {{rws|Northallerton}} (1tp2h), {{rws|Darlington}}, {{rws|Durham}}, {{rws|Newcastle}}, {{rws|Alnmouth}} (1tp2h)<br />(Northallerton and Alnmouth are usually served by alternate trains) || 1tpd to {{rws|Glasgow Central}}<br />1tpd to {{rws|Sunderland}} |- | style="background:#1B93D1; color:White" width="16px" | <big><big><big>'''D'''</big></big></big> ||{{rws|London King's Cross}} to {{rws|Newark North Gate}} (and {{rws|York}}) || 1tph || {{rws|Stevenage}}, {{rws|Peterborough}}, {{rws|Grantham}};<br />1tp2h extended to York calling at {{rws|Retford}} and {{rws|Doncaster}} || 1tpd to {{rws|Lincoln}}<br />1tpd to [[Hull Paragon Interchange|Hull]] |} ===Named trains=== {{details|List of named passenger trains of the United Kingdom}} Virgin Trains East Coast operates a number of named passenger trains, including: {| class="wikitable" border="1" ! width="250px" | '''Name''' || '''Origin''' || '''Destination''' || '''Other details''' |- | ''[[Flying Scotsman (train)|Flying Scotsman]]'' || [[London King's Cross railway station|London King's Cross]] || [[Edinburgh Waverley railway station|Edinburgh Waverley]] || Service began 1862 in both directions; named by [[LNER]] in 1924 |- | ''[[Highland Chieftain]]'' || London King's Cross || [[Inverness railway station|Inverness]] || 1tpd both ways, the longest VTEC route |- | ''[[Hull Executive]]'' || London King's Cross || [[Hull railway station|Hull]] || |- | ''[[Northern Lights (passenger train)|Northern Lights]]'' || London King's Cross || [[Aberdeen railway station|Aberdeen]] || 3tpd both ways |- |} ===Service changes=== Virgin Trains East Coast introduced once per day services to [[Stirling railway station, Scotland|Stirling]] and {{stn|Sunderland}} via {{rws|Newcastle}} on 14 December 2015, along with one extra service each weekday evening between Hull and Doncaster via Selby.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.virgintrainseastcoast.com/post/2015/12/18/triple-swoop-for-virgin-trains|title=Triple Swoop for Virgin Trains|publisher=}}</ref> In May 2016, a number of weekday services to Newcastle were extended to Edinburgh meaning there is almost a complete half hourly service between the two cities. Since December 2016, {{stn|Morpeth}} has benefited from additional stops provided by the operator to improve connections to Edinburgh and London. VTEC are proposing to extend services that terminate at [[Newark North Gate railway station|Newark]] and [[York railway station|York]] to [[Lincoln railway station|Lincoln]] and [[Harrogate railway station|Harrogate]] respectively.<ref name=RailwayGazette27Nov14/> In May 2019, it is proposed that a half-hourly service to Edinburgh be introduced with a fleet of six to eight 9-car [[InterCity 225]] sets operating limited stops services. In May 2020, it is proposed to extend services to [[Huddersfield railway station|Huddersfield]] and [[Middlesbrough railway station|Middlesbrough]].<ref name=BBC27Nov14/><ref name=RailwayGazette27Nov14/><ref>"Stagecoach/Virgin bid wins East Coast franchise" ''[[The Railway Magazine]]'' issue 1366 January 2015 page 6</ref><ref name=Rail778>"Review delays ORR decision on ECML train paths" ''[[Rail (magazine)|Rail]]'' issue 778 8 July 2015 page 10</ref> Following the December 2017 timetable change, VTEC introduced 24 new Saturday services, increasing the number of Saturday services to 151, only six fewer than weekdays. A weekday service from York at 4:40{{nbsp}}am arriving in London for 7{{nbsp}}am was also introduced.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.insidermedia.com/insider/national/seat-boost-to-virgins-east-coast-mainline-service|title=Seat boost to Virgin’s east coast mainline service|first=Insider Media|last=Ltd|publisher=}}</ref> ==Rolling stock== Virgin Trains East Coast inherited a fleet of [[InterCity 125]] and [[InterCity 225]]s from [[East Coast (train operating company)|East Coast]]. Most driving vehicles received a Virgin logo within the first three days of the franchise, and all train sets received a full Virgin Trains East Coast livery by November 2015. Attention then turned to the interiors, with toilets to be refreshed and seat covers and carpets replaced.<ref>[http://www.virgintrainseastcoast.com/about-us/planned-improvements/ Planned Improvements] Virgin Trains East Coast</ref> The first refurbished set entered service on 31 December 2015, and by August 2016 all of the HST sets had been refurbished followed by the 225's completed refurbished fleet in January 2017. In July 2015, an additional InterCity 125 set was transferred from [[East Midlands Trains]].<ref>"Mk3s transferred to VTEC" ''Rail'' issue 779 22 July 2015 page 29</ref> In September 2016, Virgin Trains East Coast hired three {{brc|90}}s from [[DB Cargo UK|DB Cargo]] for use on services to Newark, York and Leeds. ===Current fleet=== {| class="wikitable" |- style="background:#f9f9f9;" ! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Trainset&nbsp; ! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Class&nbsp; ! rowspan="2" |Image ! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Type&nbsp; ! colspan="2" |&nbsp;Top speed&nbsp; ! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Number&nbsp; ! rowspan="2"|&nbsp;Notes |- style="background:#f9f9f9;" !&nbsp;mph&nbsp; !&nbsp;km/h&nbsp; |- |rowspan="2"|'''[[InterCity 125]]''' |[[British Rail Class 43 (HST)|Class 43]] |[[File:43 316 at Kings Cross by Hugh Llewelyn.jpg|150px]] |[[Diesel locomotive]] |125 |200 |32 | |- |[[British Rail Mark 3|Mark 3 carriage]] |[[File:IC125@40 - TS 42210 at York.JPG|150px]] |[[Passenger car (rail)|Passenger carriage]] |125 |200 |117 | |- |rowspan="4"|'''[[InterCity 225]]''' |{{brc|90}} |[[File:Class 90 at Wakefield Westgate.jpg|frameless|154x154px]] |[[Electric locomotive]] |110 |177 |3 |A short term hire-in to cover for a shortfall in Class 91s. |- |{{brc|91}} |[[File:Loco 91105 at King's Cross.JPG|150px]] |[[Electric locomotive]] |140 |225 |31 | |- |rowspan="1"|[[British Rail Mark 4|Mark 4 carriage]] |[[File:Rake of VTEC Mark 4 London Kings Cross 1.jpg|150px]] |[[Passenger car (rail)|Passenger carriage]] |140 |225 |302 | |- |rowspan="1"|[[Driving Van Trailer]] |[[File:VTEC Intercity 225 set at King's Cross 2.jpg|150px]] |[[Driving Van Trailer]] |140 |225 |31 | |} ===Future fleet=== All of the current fleet are scheduled to be replaced by {{brc|800}}/{{brc|801}} high-speed trains from December 2018. These will operate in 9-carriage and 5-carriage sets.<ref>[https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/intercity-rail-travel-presentation-to-the-institute-of-mechanical-engineers Intercity Rail Travel Presentation] Department for Transport 27 June 2011</ref><ref>[http://www.railjournal.com/index.php/rolling-stock/britains-intercity-express-programme-reaches-financial-close.html#.UFT3YVEkp8s Britain's Intercity Express Programme reaches financial close] ''[[International Railway Journal]]'' 25 July 2012</ref> In March 2016, VTEC announced that its IEP trains would carry the brand name ''Azuma'', the Japanese word for "East".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-35842408 |title=Edinburgh to London train journey time to be cut to four hours |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=18 March 2016 |website=BBC News |publisher= |access-date=18 March 2016 |quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=VTEC considers route options for new Azuma fleet |url= |journal=Rail |location=Peterborough |publisher=Bauer Media |date=13 April 2016 |access-date=19 April 2016 }}</ref> VTEC has applied to operate extra limited stop services to Edinburgh, using six to eight retained [[InterCity 225]] sets.<ref name=Rail778/> {| class="wikitable" |- style="background:#f9f9f9;" ! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Trainset&nbsp; ! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Class&nbsp; ! rowspan="2" |Image ! rowspan="2" |Type ! colspan="2" |&nbsp;Top speed&nbsp; ! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Number of Units/Sets&nbsp; ! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Carriages&nbsp; ! rowspan="2" |&nbsp;Routes&nbsp; |- style="background:#f9f9f9;" !&nbsp;mph&nbsp; !&nbsp;km/h&nbsp; |- |rowspan="4"|'''[[Hitachi Super Express]]'''<ref>{{cite web|title=EMU Formations|url=http://www.abrail.co.uk/emuformations.htm|website=AbRail|publisher=AbRail|accessdate=18 November 2015}}</ref> |rowspan=2|{{brc|800}} ''Azuma'' |rowspan=4|[[File:Virgin_Azuma_train_Kings_Cross.jpg|150px]] |rowspan=2|[[Bi-Mode Multiple Unit]] |rowspan=2|140 |rowspan=2|225 |10 |5 |rowspan=2|All |- |13 |9 |- |rowspan=2|{{brc|801}} ''Azuma'' |rowspan=2|[[Electric Multiple Unit|EMU]] |rowspan=2|140 |rowspan=2|225 |12 |5 |rowspan=2|All electrified routes |- |30 |9 |- |rowspan="3"|'''[[InterCity 225]]''' |{{brc|91}} |[[File:Loco 91105 at King's Cross.JPG|150px]] |[[Electric locomotive]] |140 |225 |rowspan="3"|TBC<br><small>(6 to 8)</small> |rowspan="3"|TBC<br><small>(9)</small> |rowspan="3"|[[London King's Cross railway station|London]]-[[Edinburgh Waverley railway station|Edinburgh]] |- |rowspan="2"|[[British Rail Mark 4|Mark 4]] |[[File:Rake of VTEC Mark 4 London Kings Cross 1.jpg|150px]] |[[Passenger car (rail)|Passenger carriage]] |140 |225 |- |[[File:VTEC at Stanborough Park, Welwyn Garden City.jpg|150px]] |[[Driving Van Trailer]] |140 |225 |} ==Depots== Virgin Trains East Coast has four main depots: *[[Bounds Green TMD]], London *[[Neville Hill TMD]], Leeds *[[Heaton TMD]], Newcastle – managed by [[Northern (train operating company)|Northern]] *[[Craigentinny TMD]], Edinburgh – for repaints and heavy duty maintenance ==Operation== ===Punctuality=== The public performance measure (PPM) shows the percentage of trains which arrive at their terminating station on time. It combines figures for punctuality and reliability into a single performance measure. The most recent figure (in the four weeks from 13 December 2015 – 9 January 2016) for Virgin Trains East Coast's PPM was 82.0%, up from 81.1% in the same period a year ago. The moving annual average PPM was 86.9%.<ref name=NRperformance>{{cite web|url=http://www.networkrail.co.uk/about/performance/ |title=Network Rail Performance figures (updated every four weeks)}}</ref> ===Passenger numbers=== [[File:East Coast passenger numbers 2011-2017.png|thumb|East Coast passenger numbers in the previous year from 2011 to 2017.<ref>https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/displayreport/html/html/07f49939-36f3-4901-8332-a36f72342fe8</ref><ref>https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/displayreport/html/excel/2b2e2c38-c822-4e1f-9fb4-b049b3c13899</ref>]] ===Profitability=== Virgin Trains East Coast was forecast to pay higher premiums to the government than its predecessor East Coast did: £3.3 billion over eight years, compared with East Coast’s £1 billion over five years.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/mar/02/repainted-and-rebranded-virgin-trains-east-coast-service-leaves-london |title=repainted and rebranded Virgin Trains East Coast service leaves London}}</ref> ===Incident with Jeremy Corbyn=== {{Main|Traingate}} [[File:JC044 - pixilated (1).png|thumb|According to VTEC: "CCTV footage shows Mr Corbyn returning to Coach H and sitting down at 11.43am, shortly after being filmed while sitting on the floor and more than 2hrs before his final destination, Newcastle."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.virgintrains.co.uk/about/media-room/#/latest_media|title=Media Room & Brand News - Virgin Trains|website=www.virgintrains.co.uk}}</ref>]] In August 2016, a video was released of Labour leader [[Jeremy Corbyn]] in which he said he was forced to sit on the floor on a VTEC train to Newcastle because the train was "ram-packed". At the time, Corbyn said "Is it fair that I should upgrade my ticket whilst others who might not be able to afford such a luxury should have to sit on the floor? It’s their money I would be spending after all.”<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1625357/labour-leader-jeremy-corbyn-forced-to-sit-on-the-floor-of-a-train-carriage-after-backing-strikes-by-rail-workers/ |title=Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn forced to sit on the floor of a train carriage after backing strikes by rail workers}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/video/2016/aug/16/jeremy-corbyn-floor-overcrowded-train-video |title=Jeremy Corbyn sits on floor of overcrowded train – video}}</ref> However, Virgin Trains later released edited CCTV footage which they claimed showed Corbyn walking past empty seats in Coach H, filming the video and then walking back to Coach H to sit for the rest of the journey.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/08/23/revealed-jeremy-corbyn-had-a-seat-during-train-journey-he-claime/ |title=Revealed: Jeremy Corbyn had a seat during train journey he suggested was so ‘ram-packed’ he had to sit on floor}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.virgintrains.co.uk/about/media-room/#/pressreleases/virgin-trains-clarifies-labour-leaders-claim-of-ram-packed-service-1530005 |title=Virgin Trains clarifies Labour Leader’s claim of "ram-packed" service}}</ref> Corbyn said about the incident "Yes, I did walk through the train. Yes, I did look for two empty seats together so I could sit down with my wife, to talk to her. That wasn't possible so I went to the end of the train."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-37173048 |title=Jeremy Corbyn angered by train seat row questions}}</ref> Analysis of the CCTV footage later showed that the unreserved seats shown in some of the images were occupied and that other passengers also sat in the vestibules.<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-41036937</ref><ref>http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/media/2017/08/did-mainstream-media-smear-jeremy-corbyn-over-traingate</ref> ==Notes== {{reflist|group=nb}} ==References== {{Reflist|30em}} ==External links== *{{commons category-inline}} *{{official website|http://virgintrainseastcoast.com/}} {{S-start}} {{s-bef|before=[[East Coast (train operating company)|East Coast]]<br><small>InterCity East Coast franchise</small>}} {{s-ttl|title=Operator of [[InterCity East Coast]] franchise |years=2015–2018}} {{s-aft|after=[[London North Eastern Railway (train operating company)|London North Eastern Railway]]<br><small>InterCity East Coast franchise</small>}} {{end}} {{UK TOCs|current|state=collapsed}} {{StagecoachGroup}} {{Virgin Group}} [[Category:East Coast Main Line]] [[Category:Railway companies established in 2015]] [[Category:Rail transport in Scotland]] [[Category:Stagecoach Group rail services]] [[Category:Train operating companies]] [[Category:Virgin Trains]] [[Category:British companies established in 2015]] [[Category:Rail transport in England]]'