Q&A: West Coast Main Line franchise

Virgin Rail has always maintained that FirstGroup's bid did not stack up

The collapse of the West Coast Main Line bidding process - after the government found "significant flaws" - has left the Department for Transport facing questions from many quarters.

FirstGroup had been due to take over the running of the line from current operator Virgin Trains in December, but now the government must look at re-running the competition and keeping the line in operation for an interim period.

So how did the government manage to back-track on its decision, and what does it mean for upcoming rail franchises?

What was the original bid?

1. Bids invited for West Coast Main Line rail franchise.

2. Frontrunners, Virgin, FirstGroup, Nederlandse Spoorwegen (Dutch), and a joint bid from Keolis and SNCF (French) are invited to join bidding process.

3. Key baseline conditions for the bid published. These turn out to be flawed.

4. Franchise awarded to FirstGroup who promise “substantial improvements” to the service.

5. Virgin Trains starts legal challenge over the decision, saying that civil servants “got their maths wrong “ .

6. Government finds “severe technical flaws” in the bidding process. It is to be run again and the companies involved are to be compensated by at least £40m.

7. Transport secretary to ask Virgin if they will operate the line while a fresh bidding process takes place. FirstGroup had been due to take over by 9 December.

8. It could be several years before the long term future of the line is settled, after new contracts are handed out, following the completion of a fresh bidding process.

What concerns were raised?

What risk was the government taking?

Why was Virgin's legal challenge significant?

What did the Department for Transport get so wrong?

What do the mistakes mean for the bidders?

What is the department doing about it?

How much will the mistakes end up costing?

Why does the bidding process cost so much?

What are the implications for other rail franchises being decided in the coming months?

Are past franchise deals now in doubt?

What happens next?