Rail operator generates 112 jobs in the North East

An “affordable” rail service has today opened its new headquarters in Newcastle after creating 112 jobs in the region.

Chi Onwurah, MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central, and Cllr Ged Bell, Newcastle City Council Cabinet member for Transport, will attend the official opening of Lumo’s HQ, dubbed ‘The Lighthouse’. The event will include a ribbon cutting and a special graduation ceremony for Lumo’s 15 customer driver apprentices.

Lumo has already invested £2m in training programmes for staff based in Newcastle. It aims to create more than 13 million additional passenger journeys in the next decade along the East Coast Main Line and will contribute as much as £250m to the UK economy over ten years.

Helen Wylde, managing director of Lumo, said: “Newcastle is the gateway to the North East and we’re excited about bringing visitors here to enjoy and explore the region. It is also a fantastic place to live and work.

“We are very keen to build business connections in the region, which is why setting up here was such a good fit for us. We aim to be an employer of choice locally and would love to become part of the fabric of the community.”

The 100 per cent electric, rail service launched on October 25 and operates on the East Coast Mainline, connecting Newcastle to London, Stevenage, Morpeth, and Edinburgh. The company aims to provide customers with an affordable, low-cost alternative to flying in between the capital cities.

Helen Wylde added: “We are passionate about our people, without whom we couldn’t provide our service. We are grateful to Chi Onwurah MP and Cllr Bell for coming to officially open our headquarters, celebrating the achievements of our first class of customer driver apprentices.”