Direct Rail Services (DRS) has introduced a new cross-country rail freight service between Daventry and Coatbridge, creating an additional Anglo-Scottish route for customers looking to shift goods from road to rail.
The new service, which will initially run on a trial basis, operates over a 330-mile route and becomes DRS’s fourth Anglo-Scottish rail service. Running almost the full length of England, it is designed to open up new opportunities for businesses considering rail freight but not yet ready to commit to a dedicated train.
Services will be hauled by DRS’s Class 88 locomotives, which can operate using electricity and produce no exhaust emissions when running under the wires. Each train has the potential to remove around 30 HGVs from the road network, supporting efforts to cut congestion and reduce environmental impact.
Gottfried Eymer, NTS’s Managing Director for Rail, said:
“This new service is a fantastic opportunity for those who have considered rail but are yet to make the switch from road.
One of the key benefits of this service is that it will run on electricity and produce no exhaust emissions, which is fantastic for the environment. Each train can take around 30 HGVs off the roads.
The unique feature of this train is that it is made up of goods from multiple customers, making it ideal for businesses that would like to benefit from rail but lack the volumes to justify their own train.”
The multi-customer model is aimed at making rail freight more accessible to a wider range of businesses, particularly those with smaller or more variable volumes. Interested customers are invited to contact [email protected] for more information.
