Avanti West Coast achieves £1bn turnover despite ranking low on UK reliability charts

Despite being named one of the least reliable rail operators in Britain, Avanti West Coast's turnover exceeded £1bn last year. The train operator, a joint venture between Firstgroup and Italian rail firm Trenitalia, reported a turnover of £1.01bn for the 12 months to 31 March, 2024, an increase from £967.4m.

However, Companies House filings reveal that pre-tax profit dipped from £12.8m to £12.3m over the same period. Avanti, which took over the west coast mainline from Virgin Trains in December 2019, is 70% owned by FirstGroup and 30% by Trenitalia, as reported by City AM.

It operates services between London Euston and several cities including Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, and Glasgow. The accounts also show a dividend of £8.1m for the year, down from £11m.

Passenger revenue totalled just over £1bn, up from £808.9m, with passenger numbers at 83% of pre-pandemic levels, up from 67%. Avanti West Coast returned a net payment of £21.9m to the Department for Transport (DfT) during the year, following a subsidy of £92.4m the previous year.

According to the Office of Rail and Road, Avanti West Coast had the third worst reliability of all operators in Britain in the year to 31 March, 2024.

In the past year, an equivalent of one in 15 trains (6.9%) were cancelled, including pre-emptive cancellations before 10pm the previous night due to crew shortages. Avanti West Coast's contract, which could last up to nine years, may be cut short by the government with just three months' notice after the initial three-year period.

Meanwhile, the new Labour administration is devising a strategy to renationalise nearly all passenger rail services within five years. The plan involves transferring private train company contracts to Great British Railways, a new public body, as they expire.

Avanti West Coast has expressed a 'singular focus' on service delivery. A board-approved statement read: "The company is working hard with a singular focus on delivering the service that customers expect."

It also noted: "The company has reached an agreement with the relevant trade unions on the incremental use of rest day working for train drivers, which helps support operational resilience."

Furthermore, the statement highlighted ongoing collaborations: "The company also continues to work with the DfT and other stakeholders on its plans to deliver long term improvements in customer experience and resilience."