SIGNAL FAILURES
Virgin’s miracle
RICHARD BRANSON has donned rose-tinted specs as Virgin presses for consent to compete against Eurostar.
“Virgin is driven by the urge to fix businesses that aren’t working”, ran the headline on Branson’s recent Times comment piece, which explained how Virgin had “transformed rail” by introducing tilting trains, trebling services, boosting passenger numbers and topping satisfaction surveys. He didn’t mention Virgin’s CrossCountry and east coast mainline franchises – both ditched early because they weren’t, er, working.