Press release -

ANPR at Oxenholme station is wheeled out by Virgin Trains

  • Virgin Trains introduces new Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology at Oxenholme station for customers travelling to the station by car

Virgin Trains has introduced Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) at Oxenholme station, making it the first station managed by Virgin on the West Coast Main Line to adopt the technology. 

Designed to make end-to-end journeys more seamless, the technology, which reads vehicle number plates, will improve the journey experience for people travelling to and from Oxenholme by car – saving time entering and exiting the car park, where car park barriers were previously in place; and removing the hassle of having to pay for parking after travelling by train.

The new system provides more options for payment at the parking payment machine, including card, Google Wallet, Apple Pay and cash and can be done before or after a train journey.

Payment can also be made online at parking.virgintrains.co.uk - where regular customers can create an account or purchase a Car Park Season Ticket.

The launch of the technology follows the introduction of pre-bookable parking at the station, and work by Virgin Trains and Network Rail to create additional spaces in the lower car park.

Louise Fairclough,Virgin Trains Station Manager at Oxenholme, said:"Parking is important to our customers, many of whom travel to the station from remote areas by car, and the introduction of ANPR will improve the experience for people travelling to and from Oxenholme station. The technology is user-friendly – it saves time getting in and out of the car park and provides more flexible payment options, making end-to-end journeys more seamless.”

ENDS

Topics

  • Transport

Categories

  • routes & stations
  • regional news

Notes to Editors

Payment for parking at Oxenholme station must be made by 02.59am after departure from the Car Park.

About Virgin Trains

Stagecoach and Virgin are working in partnership to operate the West Coast inter-city route under the Virgin Trains brand, revolutionising travel on one of the UK’s key rail arteries.

The network connects some of the nation’s most iconic destinations including Glasgow, Liverpool, Birmingham, Manchester 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 ahead of other long-distance rail franchise operators in the National Rail Passenger Survey (NRPS) commissioned by industry watchdog, Transport Focus.

Virgin Trains has a proud record of challenging the status quo - from introducing tilting Pendolino trains, to a pioneering automated delay repay scheme, introducing the industry-leading onboard entertainment streaming service, BEAM, and becoming the first franchised rail operator to offer m-Tickets for all ticket types.

Virgin Trains operated the East Coast route between March 1, 2015 and June 24, 2018. In that time, we invested £75m to create a more personalised travel experience, including over £40m in the existing fleet. Customers have benefitted from 48 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 2015.

Working together, the partnership railway of the public and private sectors has published a long-term plan, called In Partnership for Britain’s Prosperity, to change and improve Britain’s railway. The plan will secure almost £85bn of additional economic benefits to the country whilst enabling further investment and improvement, and contains four commitments which will see rail companies: strengthen our economic contribution to the country; improve customers’ satisfaction; boost the communities we serve; and, create more and better jobs in rail. For more information go to Britain Runs on Rail.

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Press Office: 0845 000 3333.

Contacts

Virgin Trains Press Office

Press contact 0845 000 3333