07.06.16
Northern announces four new business regions
Northern will create four new business regions to oversee the improvements planned following the franchise integration with Arriva, it has announced today.
The regions, which go live from 1 July, will be Central, based in Manchester and covering an area from Clitheroe and Colne to Crewe and Stoke-on-Trent. It will led by Liam Sumpter, formerly area director for the West Midlands and Chilterns.
The East region, based in Leeds, will be bordered by Hull, Nottingham, Todmorden and Armathwaite and led by Paul Barnfield, who has worked for Northern since 2010 and is currently director of operations.
The North-East region, based in Newcastle, will be led by Mike Paterson, who joins Northern from PA Consulting. The West region, based in Preston, will be led by Sharon Keith, previously managing director at Tyne and Wear Metro.
Alex Hynes, managing director of Northern, said: “Regions are at the heart of our new franchise. They will enable the transformation of Northern, bringing our people and service delivery closer to the communities and customers we serve.
“The new team of regional directors will utilise our extensive knowledge of local customer needs and transport opportunities to build railway services that meet the needs of their region.”
Arriva confirmed it is planning to go ahead with its planned improvements, including a 40% increase in capacity and 2,000 extra services every week. The full integration of Arriva with Northern, however, is subject to an investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority.
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