West Coast rail line extension awarded to Virgin

Virgin Trains has pledged improvements to the West Coast rail line after being granted an extension to run the service for almost three years.

The company says it will invest £35m and promises thousands more seats, free Wi-Fi and improved parking at Carlisle.

It had previously lost out to First Group in the battle for the 13-year franchise but that decision was reversed by the Department for Transport because of errors in the bidding process.