15.02.08
National Express East Coast to relocate to new HQ in York
York-based train operator National Express East Coast is to relocate its headquarters to new premises in central York this summer, reaffirming its commitment to the city.
The company, which started running rail services on the East Coast Main Line last December, currently occupies less than a third of its Victorian HQ building in Station Road, after Northern Rail and Network Rail vacated, but will become the sole occupier of new, more contemporary offices at Albion Wharf.
The move is expected to happen during June, following an interior re-fit. Longer-term, the landlord of National Express East Coast’s current HQ wants to convert the building into a 5-star hotel.
The new HQ for National Express East Coast at Albion Wharf is a 5-storey building with basement, occupying 22,300 square feet of office space, and is positioned on the riverfront near Skeldergate. It will be supplied by green tariff electricity, which is a practice adopted at all National Express premises.
The office block will house the sales & marketing, commercial, finance, operations, engineering, procurement, information technology, compliance, customer service, safety & environment, human resources and communications teams. The learning and development team within the HR function will remain in The Studio, National Express East Coast’s training complex at York station.
The company’s national Control Centre will continue to be co-located with Network Rail, Northern Rail and TransPennine in purpose-built premises near the railway station. David Franks, managing director of National Express East Coast, said:
“Our new HQ will provide spacious, open-plan, modern accommodation and an improved working environment for our high-calibre HQ team. “During the franchise competition last year we said that, if successful, we would be based in York. We are delighted to honour that promise, reaffirming our commitment to this great railway city.”
Welcoming the move, Councillor Steve Galloway, leader of City of York Council, said: “National Express East Coast is an important employer in York and I am delighted that it has confirmed that its HQ will continue to be here. We look forward to developing a close partnership over the coming years, building on York’s rich railway heritage.”
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