FIVE major rail industry companies have teamed up in a unique bid to reduce passenger disruption during weekend blockades of the West Coast route.

The move follows the Office of Rail Regulation’s decision that modernisation work must be completed by December.

Virgin and freight train operator EWS wanted the work to be spread into 2009 to avoid some weekend disruption and to give more time for staff training, such as route learning.

However, the ORR elected to keep to the planned timescale but warned Network Rail that it would closely monitor delivery of the work.

So Virgin Trains, Network Rail, EWS, Chiltern Railways and Bombardier have now got together to run trains from Euston to Birmingham International via the Chiltern route, chiefly on Saturdays.

Long-distance passengers will still have to change trains, but it will be cross-platform rather than using buses.

Chris Gibb, chief operating officer, Virgin Trains, said: “This is a great example of cross-industry involvement. Route learning has started in under two months from project inception and the actual service will start just four weeks later.

“I am grateful to Chiltern, EWS, Network Rail and Bombardier who have responded to some pretty tight timescales to enable training runs to start and the project become reality.”

In a special exercise Network Rail has produced paths and timings for the services, which will run hourly.

Virgin will use Voyager diesel trains for the service – taken from the Birmingham to Scotland run, which will use Pendolinos instead. Virgin Trains drivers working the Chiltern route will be conducted by EWS drivers and Chiltern is helping with route learning.

The special service is expected to cover 35 days, starting Saturday 28 June, when the West Coast route is blocked by engineering work.

The current system of a Pendolino shuttle to Northampton and buses to Birmingham International for trains north will continue.

Earlier, Virgin’s overall boss Sir Richard Branson entered the row over West Coast engineering work with a letter to the Financial Times in which he called the plan to complete the work by December “unrealistic”.

Sir Richard said recent signalling problems at Milton Keynes had “made me and my Virgin Trains team increasingly worried about the ability of Network Rail to meet its timetable and deliver an upgraded railway that is reliable and can be maintained.”

But Network Rail chief executive Iain Coucher said: “We recognise this massive engineering undertaking will continue to cause disruption to services along the route for the rest of the year, but the significant benefits that will be delivered make it more than worthwhile.”