Press release -
Virgin Trains help Doncaster Rovers fans get home from prestigious match
Virgin Trains will run an additional late night service to help Doncaster Rovers fans get home from the capital after its prestigious cup match against Arsenal next week.
The football club’s Carabao Cup third round fixture against Premier League side Arsenal will take place at The Emirates Stadium on Wednesday 20 September with a kick off time at 19.45. Rovers have beaten Bradford City and Sky Bet Championship side Hull City to reach the third round, while this will be the Gunners’ first fixture in this season’s Carabao Cup.
As the tie must be decided on the night, potentially with extra time and penalties, Virgin Trains has stepped in to provide an extra late night service which will depart from London King’s Cross at 23.21 and travel direct to Doncaster, arriving at 01.19. Fares start at just £25 in Standard Class (£50 return) and £48 in First Class (£96 return).
And Rovers’ fans who have registered with the club’s DNA Card discount scheme can save even further with a 25% discount on advance fares booked with Virgin Trains.
Doncaster Rovers’ Head of Commercial Andrew Whitham said: “I’m really pleased our partners Virgin Trains have been able to put on this extra train to accommodate our supporters returning from Arsenal.
“What’s more - registered DNA Card holders can save even further with their 25 per cent discount meaning at the time this service went on sale you could get return tickets for £33.”
In May Virgin Trains were unveiled as the Sky Bet League One club’s shirt sponsors for two seasons. This followed confirmation that Virgin Trains would sponsor the club’s training kit earlier in the year.
Phil Peacock, Brand Partnerships Manager at Virgin Trains, said: “It’s a very prestigious tie for Rovers and we’re delighted for the club and, of course, its fans. We hope the extra train we have specifically arranged for Rovers’ fans, along with our other timetabled services, will help those wanting to travel to the game by train get back home after the match.
“Fans wanting to travel to the match and return on the extra train are urged to book via our website from today at www.virgintrainseastcoast.com.”
ENDS
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About Virgin Trains:
Stagecoach and Virgin are working in partnership to operate the East Coast and West Coast inter-city routes under the Virgin Trains brand. Together, they are on track to revolutionise rail travel across the UK.
The combined network connects some of the nation’s most iconic destinations including Glasgow, Liverpool, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Leeds, York and London.
Virgin Trains is committed to delivering a high speed, high frequency service, offering shorter journey times, more comfortable travel and excellent customer service. Customers consistently rate Virgin Trains as one of the top long-distance rail franchise operators in the National Rail Passenger Survey (NRPS) commissioned by industry watchdog, Transport Focus.
On the East Coast route, £140m is being invested to create a more personalised travel experience. We have already invested over £40m in our existing fleet, including £21m refurbishing the interiors and £16m towards improving the engines of our trains. Customers can now benefit from 42 additional services between Edinburgh and London every week, and an extra 22 Saturday services between Leeds and London – a total of 1.74 million additional seats since May 2016. 2018 will see the introduction of completely new Azuma trains being built in the UK by Hitachi.
The West Coast route has a proud record of challenging the status quo - from introducing tilting Pendolino trains, to a pioneering automated delay repay scheme and becoming the first franchised rail operator to offer m-Tickets for all ticket types.
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