 | |
 InterCity 125 HST at London King's Cross in 2007 | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Franchise(s) | InterCity East Coast 28 April 1996 – 8 December 2007 |
| Main region(s) | |
| Fleet size |
|
| Stations called at | 53 |
| Stations operated | 12 |
| Parent company | Sea Containers |
| Reporting mark | GR |
| Predecessor | InterCity |
| Successor | National Express East Coast |
| Other | |
| Website | gner.co.uk |
Great North Eastern Railway,[1] often referred to as GNER, was a train operating company in the United Kingdom, owned by Sea Containers, that operated the InterCity East Coast franchise on the East Coast Main Line between London, Yorkshire, North East England and Scotland from April 1996 until December 2007.
During March 1996, Sea Containers was awarded the franchise to operate the East Coast services; it begin operations on 28 April 1996. Initially receiving a favourable reception, the company brought in several service alterations and innovations, including the leasing of Class 373 Regional Eurostars along with the refurbishment of the InterCity 225 fleet. However, GNER's reputation and passenger numbers were both hit by a pair of derailments during the early 2000s, the Hatfield rail crash and the Great Heck rail crash. Plans to procure a fleet of tilting trains based on the Pendolino were mooted by the company, but were discarded amid a protracted and complex refranchising process.
During March 2005, the Strategic Rail Authority awarded the East Coast franchise to GNER for a second time; however, the terms for this second franchise period were financially demanding, seeing the withdrawal of subsidies and enactment of charges to the British Government. Concerns over the viability of such payments, as well as the general financial condition of Sea Containers were well-founded, with the latter entering bankruptcy in November 2006. Following its inability to fulfil agreed payments, GNER was stripped of the franchise during December 2006, although it continued to run services on the route for another year via a management contract. The final northbound GNER train was the 20:30 London King's Cross – Newcastle on 8 December 2007; the company was replaced by the new franchisee National Express East Coast one day later.
- ^ Companies House extract company no 2938984 Archived 3 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine 02938984 Limited, formerly InterCity East Coast Limited.