East Midlands Trains scoops coveted national award

East Midlands Trains beat off stiff competition from railway companies across the country to win the Passenger Operator of the Year at the National Rail Awards.

As the most sought-after award at the ceremony on Thursday, the Passenger Operator of the Year award recognises the transformation made by firm over the past year.

David Horne, managing director of East Midlands Trains, said: “This is an incredible achievement for East Midlands Trains and I am so proud of our 2,020 staff who work so hard to deliver a great service for our customers and at the same time have helped to deliver some major improvements to our railway.

It was great to have some of our front-line customer service, engineering and operational staff at the awards ceremony to share this moment of celebration.

“First and foremost, this award really is testament to our people and their hard work, professionalism and commitment. It is also a tribute to our colleagues at Network Rail, Bombardier and others who work alongside us to deliver a safe and reliable railway for our 66,000 customers every day.

“We would also like to thank our customers who have played such a huge role in our success and have given some great feedback on our services to help us improve for the future. We remain committed to doing even more to ensure we continue to set a high standard for train travel and delivering great service we can all be proud of.”

East Midlands Trains was also highly commended in the Putting Passengers First category for its customer focused approach to the Nottingham re-signalling works during the summer of 2013, which independent watchdog Passenger Focus declared has set a new benchmark for major works of this nature.

The National Rail Awards celebrate excellence and achievement and are seen as one of the most prestigious awards in the rail industry. The award winners are decided by an independent panel.