Under the new agreement, the delivery of day-to-day rail services will become the responsibility of Transport for Wales Rail Ltd. Infrastructure management and transformation of the Welsh Government owned Core Valley Lines will continue to be delivered under the current contract with AMEY Keolis Infrastructure Ltd.
KeolisAmey will continue their collaborative relationship with Transport for Wales through the new partnership, knows as ‘Transport for Wales Innovation Services’, drawing on their international expertise in integrated ticketing, on-demand transport and multi-modal transport planning and delivery] to support the ongoing transformation of the Wales and Borders rail network.
The Ashurst team was led by transport partners Naomi Horton and Jonathan Turner, supported by senior associates Philippa Hinton, Mark Emmanuel, Kate McKenzie and Laura Green, and associates Megan Caulfield, Alice Dawson and Heather Shand. Partner Jamie Chapman advised on property aspects, assisted by associate Lucy Picton-Turbervill, with senior associate Ed McNeill advising on competition matters and counsel Gita Shivarattan providing advice on GDPR aspects. Tax advice was provided by partner Nick Gardner, assisted by associate Rebecca Kell. Employment advice was provided by partner Ruth Buchanan, with counsel John Gordon advising on pension matters. The wider Ashurst team included partner Paddy Boyle, senior associates Shan Koh and Naomi Nyguyen, and associate Farah Zafar, as well as support from disputes partners Jon Gale and Tom Duncan, assisted by senior associate Luke Carbon, and corporate partners Gaby Jones and Markjan van Schaardenburgh, assisted by associate Kiara de Silva.
Commenting, partner Naomi Horton said:
"It has been a privilege to have had the opportunity to apply our expertise and experience in the rail industry in assisting KeolisAmey in redefining this strategic partnership with Transport for Wales. The Covid pandemic has had a significant impact on the rail industry, and this new partnership ensures this transformational project can continue in a sustainable way."
Jon Turner added:
"We are delighted to have worked with Keolis and Amey on this important partnership and to continue our longstanding relationship with them. Through market-leading expertise, hard work and collaboration, we were able to reach a new agreement to ensure the seamless transfer to a new public ownership model alongside the launch of the Transport for Wales Innovation Services partnership within a short timeframe and in the midst of challenging times with the COVID-19 pandemic."
