The new coach services launch on 1 February with National Express operating 13 fast coach services from its coach station at Harbour Parade to London Hammersmith and Victoria everyday.  Prior to these changes, National Express operated the majority of its London services via Heathrow Airport, which increased the journey time for people just travelling to London. The new London service will bypass the airport and head straight to the Capital, reducing the journey time from 25 minutes up to an hour.

People travelling to the airport will also benefit as National Express is introducing the region’s first direct link to T4 and T5 in addition to the Central Coach Station at the airport.  T5 now accounts for half the traffic at Heathrow and 10 dedicated coach services will operate throughout the day to deliver holiday makers, business people and cabin crew direct to the terminal door.

18 new jobs in the local area have been created as a result of these changes, and two more brand new coaches have been added to the fleet.  The coaches feature free WiFi, reclining leather seats, air conditioning, toilet facilities, three point seat belts and adjustable seat belts for children all as standard.

Guy Stephenson, Commercial Director for National Express coaches, said:  “We have listened to what customers want, and that is more direct services to their destination.  Our new services will deliver faster, more convenient connections to London and Heathrow throughout the day. The London service is 25 minutes faster and offers fares from 99p, while the Heathrow service delivers customers direct to the terminal door without the hassle of parking or hauling suitcases.”

Passengers travelling with National Express are also helping to offset their carbon emissions. Coach is the most environmentally friendly mode of public transport, as well as one of the most affordable” Guy added.

Features of the new services include:

• New, direct coach routes taking customers straight to London or Heathrow
• 13 fast journeys to London per day, 25 minutes quicker than current service
• Southampton’s first ever direct link to Heathrow terminals four, five and the Central Bus Station
• Dedicated pick up point at Southampton University, Highfield Bus Interchange for London and Heathrow coach services
• Fares from 99p on London services
• Free WiFi for all customers
• Brand new coaches fitted with leather reclining seats, air conditioning, toilet facilities
• Two new 24-hour ticket machines at the coach station

To make it easier for passengers to ‘turn up and go’ National Express has also introduced two new 24 hour ticket machines at its coach station in Harbour Parade. The ticket machines let customers buy tickets for travel anywhere in Britain by cash or card and are available in three languages. 

National Express coaches to London and Heathrow feature reclining leather seats and free WiFi as well as air conditioning and onboard toilets. National Express coaches also feature a specially designed lift to enable passengers in wheelchairs to access the service easily

For more information please contact:
Joy Williams
0121 460 8419
Joy.williams@nationalexpress.com

NXEA staff had expressed a wish that local charities should benefit from the company’s generosity and a total of £1,273 is being donated by National Express to be shared equally between six Community Foundations in the region.

An added bonus is that the money donated will be increased by 50% thanks to Essex Community Foundation managing the Government’s Grassroots Grants and Endowment Match Challenge.

Lucy McAuliffe, National Express East Anglia’s Chelmsford station Manager said:

"Our Staff expressed the wish that we make donations at a local level so tapping into the local knowledge and expertise of the community foundations in our areas was the obvious choice for us."

Laura Warren, Chief Executive of Essex Community Foundation said: "We are delighted that National Express has once again chosen to work with Community Foundations in the eastern region and take advantage of the Grassroots Challenge - there couldn’t be a better time for companies and individuals to support their local community."

For more information about Essex Community Foundation, the Grassroots Grants Challenge and how to support your local community, visit  www.essexcommunityfoundation.org.uk   or call Jo Murphy on 01245 355947.

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Notes to Editors

For further information about this press release, please ring the National Express East Anglia Press Office on 0207 549 5966.

NXEA staff had expressed a wish that local charities should benefit from the company’s generosity and a total of £1,273 is being donated by National Express and shared out between the Community Foundations charities in the region.

In some cases the money donated will increase due to the match funding available through the Government’s Grassroots Grants challenge.

Keely Padgin, Area Manager for National Express East Anglia at Cambridge station said, “We’re really pleased to respond to our staff’s request to make donations at a more local level and so the obvious route for us was to work with the Community Foundations in the areas we serve.”   

Jane Darlington, Chief Executive of Cambridgeshire Community Foundation said:

“We are delighted that National express have again shown their support for local community and voluntary groups by making a donation to us. Under the Grassroots Grant challenge we can double the value of the donation and use the sum to make small grants to some of the many groups that approach us for financial support. On their behalf – thank you!

For more information about Cambridgeshire Community Foundation, the Grassroots Grants Challenge and how to support your local community, visit www.cambscf.org.uk or call 01223 401535

Safer Travel, a partnership between West Midlands Police, the Safer Birmingham Partnership, National Express West Midlands and Centro, launched See Something Say Something in October last year. In the 12 months following the launch, a total of 1,747 calls were logged through the scheme’s internet, text and phone reporting system.

The information from passengers has helped the Safer Travel Partnership stage a series of operations which have helped deter nuisance behaviour and led to a number of arrests.

Inspector Catherine Webb-Jones, who leads the Safer Travel police team, said: “It’s been very encouraging to see a growing number of passengers using See Something Say Something in order to play their part in fighting back against anti-social behaviour.

“The useful intelligence forwarded by these passengers has helped us stage a number of successful operations targeting specific areas. 

“It’s been a case of “you said it, we did it” and we are very grateful to all those people who have used the reporting system.”

Crime on the region’s buses has been cut by 43 per cent over the last two years and with bus crime now at its lowest level for four years, the main concern for many passengers is combating nuisance behaviour.

Figures for the first 12 months show that smoking on the bus has been the biggest anti-social issue amongst passengers with graffiti and the playing of loud music also highlighted.

The information submitted through See Something Say Something has helped the Partnership build a picture of hotspots and take appropriate action.

Bus operator National Express West Midlands has carried out more than 100 anti-smoking covert operations in the first year which has resulted in 70 offenders being taken to court and fined.

The Safer Travel team has also followed up reported incidents by studying CCTV footage, launching regular patrols along hot spot routes and mounting undercover, plain clothes operations.

Under the See Something Say Something scheme, passengers can give details about incidents of anti-social behaviour by logging on to www.safertravel.info

Alternatively they can text 07624 818332 or simply phone West Midlands Police on 0845 113 5000.

If a passenger witnesses a crime they should phone 999 as usual.

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The first coach service, en route to London, will depart the new station at 8am, driven by Ray Wicketts who was also the last employee to drive a coach out of the old site.

National Express’ flagship coach station is now one of the most important gateways to Birmingham, with three million travellers passing through annually. It will also spearhead the redevelopment of Digbeth by delivering visitors from throughout and Britain and Europe.  

Designed by SBS Architects, the new Birmingham coach station features a sweeping canopy, copper facade, an open plan concourse, 16 coach bays and retail outlets Starbucks, WHSmith and Upper Crust.  A prominent feature of the coach station is the dramatic new contemporary artwork which surrounds the site.

Paul Bunting, Strategic Sales and Marketing Director for National Express said: “We are so proud to welcome people back to the new Birmingham Coach Station.”

“Just two years since the old station closed, Birmingham’s exciting new transport gateway is open and the people of Birmingham will be proud of it for many years to come.  People will be able to travel to hundreds of destinations throughout the UK from the new station and we will be launching some exciting new changes to some services in the New Year.”

“We’re delighted to be spearheading the redevelopment of Digbeth, Birmingham’s birthplace, with the new station and the innovative public arts project. “

The site is on track to become the first coach station to receive a BREEAM excellent rating for environmental build. The station features a number of impressive green benefits including:

·         Rainwater harvesting which provides 100% of the water for customer toilets

·         Sustainable construction methods and materials used throughout the project

·         Use of “green electricity” from sustainable sources

The coach station will also play a key role in the National Express coach network with the majority of cross country services passing through the site and providing a glimpse of Birmingham to millions of people.

Last week National Express also unveiled the highly anticipated Digbeth Arts project which has run parallel to the development of the new station. The project consists of two art installations – the 181 metre long ‘Boundary’ fence and an Irish inspired artwork mounted on 321 Bradford Street.

The new art works have been developed through community consultation and recognise the importance of Digbeth as a gateway to the city whilst reflecting its rich cultural heritage through contemporary art.

‘Boundary’ comprises of 320 steel haunches, which wrap round the new Coach Station, inspired by Midland Red and the Avery weights factory which once stood in Digbeth.

The other major piece is the Irish Quarter Artwork based on the traditional Irish greeting. ‘One Hundred Thousand Welcomes’.

The journey of the Digbeth Public Art Project has been documented in a short film which will play in the coach station waiting area as a permanent digital media installation.

The new coach station will include:

Spacious and airy concourse design with a high canopy
Temperature controlled, enclosed waiting area away from the coaches, with comfortable seating and electronic passenger information screens
Information centre providing tickets and as-it-happens travel information  
Café and shops facing on to Digbeth, with dual access from both the coach station concourse and the street
Office space above the station will accommodate the National Express UK head office
Short stay customer car park with 15 spaces (including two dedicated disabled bays)
‘Meet and greet’ drop off zone on Mill Lane, adjacent to the new main entrance to the coach station
Dedicated taxi waiting zone
16 coach bays, (two more than the old station), and four layover bays, allowing for potential and predicted growth in coach travel
New toilet facilities          

The Official opening of the coach station will take place on 18 December 2008.  The England Manager, Fabio Capello will open the coach station together with the Lord Mayor of Birmingham.

 -ENDS-

Chris Mole MP, The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport and Andrew Chivers, Managing Director, NXEA will launch the Service Improvement Plan by naming a train at Liverpool Street station at 10.00am and unveil a customer information brochure giving details about the improvements.  

The first stage of NXEA’s improvement plan to provide commuters with more seats is being implemented to coincide with the start of the new winter timetable, which will see a total of around 5,700 extra seats each day introduced on trains that are regularly very busy on the lines between Braintree, Clacton-on-Sea, Colchester, Chelmsford, Harwich, Ipswich, Witham and London Liverpool Street.

The centre-piece of the NXEA Service Improvement Plan is a major deal agreed with the Department for Transport in April 2009 to boost rail capacity on train services to and from London Liverpool Street. This is being achieved through the construction of 120 new rail carriages and the transfer of 68 additional modern refurbished carriages to be added to East Anglia services. The 120 new carriages will be introduced on Stansted Airport and Cambridge to Liverpool Street services in 2011, and the 68 refurbished carriages will be introduced on the Great Eastern mainline route from Suffolk and North Essex into Liverpool Street in two phases - December 2009 and December 2010. Over the next two years, passengers across Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire using NXEA services will benefit from the improvement plan.

Commenting on the launch of the improvement plan, Andrew Chivers, Managing Director NXEA said: “I am delighted that we are launching our Service Improvement Plan which will benefit thousands of our customers. The most significant enhancements are the introduction of 30 new trains and 17 refurbished trains enabling us to carry over 11,000 extra passengers into London at peak-times every weekday. We are also working on other improvements to provide better cleaning and information, a brighter on-train environment, some station improvements and more car parking, and we will continue to play a leading role in developing a positive future strategy for rail services in the East of England.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

PHOTOCALL: Reporters and photographers are welcome to join us at London Liverpool Street on Monday 14 December at 09.45 for 10.00 at Platform 10 for the Service Improvement Plan launch.

The first stage of NXEA’s Service Improvement Plan is being introduced from the start of the winter timetable on 13/14 December 2009 and includes:

Trains increased to 12 carriages

05.21 & 08.03 Colchester to Liverpool Street; 06.21 Colchester Town to Liverpool Street;

07.03 Chelmsford to Liverpool Street; 09.00 Braintree to Liverpool Street; 17.08 Liverpool Street to Clacton-on-Sea, (12 carriages to Colchester); 18.22 Liverpool Street to Clacton-on-Sea, (12 carriages to Witham); 18.32 Liverpool Street to Ipswich; 06.48 Liverpool Street to Colchester; 07.48 Liverpool Street to Braintree; 09.18 Liverpool Street to Harwich; 15.00 Harwich to Liverpool Street; 19.15 Witham to Liverpool Street; 20.38 Liverpool Street to Harwich International

Other changes being introduced to provide customers with an improved choice of services include:

08.02 (Mon-Fri) Liverpool Street to Colchester Town will call additionally at Kelvedon; 16.30 (Mon-Fri) Ipswich to Colchester re-timed to depart at 16.32 and is extended to run through as an additional service to London Liverpool Street; 19.00 (Sundays) Liverpool Street to Norwich will call additionally at Chelmsford, Colchester and Manningtree

 For further information about this press release, please ring the National Express East Anglia Press Office on 0207 549 5966.

The region’s largest bus operator is freezing the price of all bus fares into 2010 to help the region recover from the effects of the recession. Bus fares have traditionally been adjusted at the start of each year.

The West Midlands has the highest unemployment levels in the country, with over 200,000 people out of work. National Express took the decision to freeze their bus fares to ensure customers can continue to access education and employment at a low cost.

Neil Barker, Director National Express bus and coach, said:
“Bus provides a vital link to education, work and healthcare across the region, with nearly 1 million journeys undertaken everyday.  We have taken the decision to hold our current prices into 2010 to help customers feeling the pinch of the recession and to encourage more car users to try public transport.

We’re committed to continually improving the bus service in the West Midlands – making it safer, cleaner and more reliable for everyone. I think customers will be particularly pleased that our popular Daysaver ticket will remain at £3.30 to help people shop, socialise and visit friends at a low cost throughout Christmas.”

It is hoped the news will also encourage more car users to switch to public transport. Each double decker bus has the potential to remove up to 50 cars from the road and significantly reduce carbon emissions in the region.

With Copenhagen dominating news headlines over the coming week one of the biggest challenges facing the Midlands will be addressing the region's carbon footprint. Public transport will play a major role in reducing pollution and National Express has invested £12million during 2009 in cleaner, greener vehicles to support Birmingham's transformation to a low carbon economy.
 
Current ticket prices:

Daysaver: £3.30
Maximum Single: £1.70
Weekly Travelcards from: £ 12.50
Monthly Direct Debit Travelcards from: £38

National Express Coventry fares will also be frozen. The current fares are:
Daysaver: £2.90
Maximum Single: £1.50
Weekly Travelcards from: £10
Monthly Direct Debit Travelcards from: £28.75

ENDS

National Express is a leading bus operator in the West Midlands and Dundee. In the West Midlands the group provides Europe’s largest fleet of easy access vehicles operating on a single area bus network.  With a fleet of over 2,000 buses, National Express provides more than 500 bus services each year and also operates the Midland Metro light railway rapid transit system from Birmingham to Wolverhampton.

For further information, please contact:
Carly O’Donnell
Tel: 0121 460 8867
Email: Carly.ODonnell@nationalexpress.com

From this date, Sunday services between Liverpool Street and Chingford will be increased to run to a 15 minute frequency throughout the day. In the current timetable, Sunday services run every 15 minutes only until 19.00 when the service changes to a 30 minute frequency for the rest of the evening.

On the Enfield Town and Hertford East lines, Sunday services between Liverpool Street and Enfield Town, and Liverpool Street and Hertford East will be increased to run to a 30 minute frequency throughout the day. Currently, Sunday services run every 30 minutes only until 18.30 when the service changes to an hourly frequency for the rest of the evening.

Other improvements in the winter timetable include the introduction of an additional late evening service on Tuesdays to Saturdays from Hertford East to London Liverpool Street departing Hertford East at 00.07.

Commenting on the December timetable improvements, Andrew Chivers, Managing Director National Express East Anglia said:

“I am pleased that we are making improvements to our Sunday services on the Chingford, Enfield Town and Hertford East lines. Extending the frequency of services on Sundays will provide our customers with a consistent pattern of service throughout the day and a greater choice of trains, and I hope this positive move will encourage more people to consider taking the train.”

ENDS

For further information about this press release, please ring the National Express East Anglia Press Office on 0207 549 5966. 

Work to increase car parking capacity at National Express East Anglia’s (NXEA) Harlow Town station will officially commence on Thursday 10 December as part of a £3m investment to construct a new car park at the station. This project is part of the company’s Service Improvement Plan to improve capacity on the East Anglia network through the introduction of 188 additional train carriages and extra car parking at key locations. The work at Harlow Town will provide sufficient future capacity in-line with the expected further growth in passengers consistent with the introduction of new trains on the West Anglia route in 2011.

The construction of the new car park is being carried out by Bourne Parking and will provide on completion an additional 300 car parking spaces increasing the total capacity at Harlow Town to approximately 700 spaces. The project is scheduled for completion later in 2010 and is being managed in two phases to help provide continuing parking facilities for existing car park season-ticket holders.                                 

Mark Phillips, Deputy Managing Director of National Express East Anglia will formally commence the start of the project at Harlow Town station on Thursday 10 December at 10.30 and will be joined by representatives of Essex County Council, Passenger Focus and Bourne Parking.

Mark Phillips commented: “I am pleased that work is commencing on the new and improved car park at Harlow Town which will provide a better facility for our customers and an extra 300 car parking spaces, making it easier to park at this busy station. The work at Harlow Town is another project in the National Express East Anglia Service Improvement Plan, with more improvements taking place over the coming months.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

Photo call: A start of work ceremony and photocall is being held at Harlow Town station on Thursday 10 December at 10.30am. Reporters and photographers are welcome to attend.

The Department for Transport announced in April 2009 a major boost to rail capacity on National Express East Anglia services to and from London Liverpool Street. This will be achieved through the construction of 120 new rail carriages and the transfer of 68 additional modern refurbished carriages to provide a total of 188 extra carriages to be added to East Anglia services. The 120 new carriages will be introduced on Stansted Airport and Cambridge – Liverpool Street services from later in 2011. The 68 refurbished carriages will be introduced on the Great Eastern mainline route through North Essex into Liverpool Street with most improvements expected to be introduced from December 2010. The capacity enhancement project also includes work to improve car parking capacity at key locations, including Harlow Town.

For further information about this press release, please ring the National Express East Anglia Press Office on 0207 549 5966. 

Customers who renew their season-ticket before 31 December will receive £20 back as well as obtaining their ticket at the new January 2010 prices.

Annual season-tickets are a great way of making savings on the cost of travel with customers receiving 52 weeks travel for the cost of 40 weeks. This special promotion is also available to new customers who purchase an annual season-ticket and customers upgrading their existing tickets such as monthly seasons between 23 and 31 December 2009.  

David Lewis, Sales & Marketing Director, National Express East Anglia said:

“This promotional package for our annual season-ticket holders enables us to say thank you to our regular commuters for their continued custom with our £20 back offer, as well as helping to ensure that as many of our customers as possible are able to benefit from the reduction in season-ticket prices in January and in renewing their ticket when our ticket offices are less busy.”

Annual season-ticket prices* are due to fall by an average of 0.4% from 2 January 2010. Through this promotion, NXEA customers with annual season-tickets who renew their annual ticket before 31 December without any break in continuity, will be able to do so at the reduced 2010 prices and get £20 back**. This special promotion will apply to customers renewing annual season-tickets that are due to expire between 23 and 31 December 2009, and also between 2 and 6 January 2010 provided tickets are renewed by 31 December 2009. 

ENDS

Notes to Editors

*Annual season-ticket prices outside of the London Travelcard zone area, are due to fall by an average of 0.4% from Saturday 2 January 2010, whilst most other fares in London wholly within the Travelcard zone area will be frozen at 2009 levels.

**To apply for the £20 back offer, eligible customers must register on-line at www.nationalexpress.com/renew before renewing their annual season-ticket.

For further information about this press release, please ring the National Express East Anglia Press Office on 0207 549 5966.