History
The concept of running trains from Hull to London was conceived by former British Rail managers, Mike Jones and John Nelson, through their Renaissance Trains business. Each took a 10% shareholding in Hull Trains with GB Railways the remaining 80%. This structure remains in place, albeit with First having acquired GB Railway's share when they purchased the company in August 2003.
In 2000 Hull Trains was granted a four-year track access agreement by the Office of Rail Regulation with operations commencing on 25 September 2000. In June 2002 it was awarded access rights for ten years. In June 2008 Hull Trains was rebranded as First Hull Trains with First's corporate blue, pink and white colours adopted. In January 2009 the access rights were extended to December 2014 and in February 2010 was further extended to December 2016.
Read more about this topic: First Hull Trains
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“To history therefore I must refer for answer, in which it would be an unhappy passage indeed, which should shew by what fatal indulgence of subordinate views and passions, a contest for an atom had defeated well founded prospects of giving liberty to half the globe.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)
“Spain is an overflow of sombreness ... a strong and threatening tide of history meets you at the frontier.”
—Wyndham Lewis (1882–1957)
“Every generation rewrites the past. In easy times history is more or less of an ornamental art, but in times of danger we are driven to the written record by a pressing need to find answers to the riddles of today.... In times of change and danger when there is a quicksand of fear under men’s reasoning, a sense of continuity with generations gone before can stretch like a lifeline across the scary present and get us past that idiot delusion of the exceptional Now that blocks good thinking.”
—John Dos Passos (1896–1970)