Date: 24/06/2018

Rail services on the East Coast Main Line are back under government control, following the failure of the franchise. Stagecoach and Virgin Trains, which had a 90% and 10% stake in the venture respectively, handed over control on Sunday after running it since 2015. The Department for Transport will run the service until a new public-private partnership can be appointed in 2020. The London to Edinburgh line connects London King's Cross to stations in the north and Scotland. The route - which services stations including York, Leeds, Newcastle, Aberdeen and Inverness - will now be known as the London North Eastern Railway (LNER), a name last used in the 1940s. The first LNER train will be the 07:54 BST departure from Newcastle to London King's Cross on Sunday.

External links

East Coast train line under public control

BBC News

The government will run the service until a new public-private partnership is appointed in 2020.