Excellent meeting today with Mark Wilkins from First Group, to discuss the new Open Access service their company will launch from 2021, running between Edinburgh, Morpeth, Newcastle and London. We look forward to an ongoing dialogue with First as their plans for this new service of 5 trains each way per day firm up. Prior to that, sister company TransPennine Express will of course start their Edinburgh – Morpeth – Leeds – Manchester – Liverpool service in 2019
