Rail firm 'in it for long haul'

Grand Central purchased and refurbished six high-speed trains

Troubled rail company Grand Central is "100% committed" to its service between the north-east of England and London, according to its founder.

The firm, which runs trains between Sunderland and London, has been plagued by problems and recently scaled back services due to technical issues.

Two of Grand Central's six power cars are now undergoing a full overhaul.

Despite the setbacks, Ian Yeowart said the company would never walk away from the "hugely important" service.

The East Coast Mainline link from Sunderland to London, via Teesside and North Yorkshire, was initially due to start in December 2006, but was repeatedly delayed because of problems obtaining rolling stock.

The three-times daily service finally began fully operating on 1 March this year.

But since then Grand Central's refurbished 125mph trains have been dogged by breakdowns.

'Bitterly disappointed'

On 21 May, the firm introduced a reduced service, with only one train making the daily return trip, leaving passengers to use a shuttle service between Sunderland and York at other times.

Mr Yeowart said: "The remaining service is running quite well, although it's clearly not desirable for us to be in this position.

"However, it has allowed us to carry out a full inspection of the power cars to find out exactly what the problem is.

"We're bitterly disappointed, but we're determined to get back this service, which for many people has provided a direct link to the capital for the first time in 40 years."

Two of the withdrawn power cars were expected to undergo test runs next week, he added, but there is no indication exactly when the full service will return.