THERE was fresh doubt concerning York's position at the hub of the North's rail network today as companies submitted their plans to run the huge new Northern franchise.

Major bidders FirstGroup and Arriva Trains Northern (ATN) will not confirm whether they will keep the main offices for the franchise, which will run services from Newcastle to Liverpool, in York.

That news came after the Evening Press revealed in some editions yesterday that FirstGroup and Keolis would be moving the headquarters for TransPennine Express away from York to Manchester.

ATN runs its network from Station Rise, but the merger of the current Northern and North Western franchises, appears to leave the city on the fringe of many of the major services.

Chiefs at the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT) have warned prospective bidders that they have a policy of no compulsory movement of staff. Any move of headquarters could affect hundreds of administrative and trains staff.

A First spokesman said the company was unable to say where its Northern headquarters would be. "There is nothing we can discuss at the moment," he said.

An ATN spokesman said: "Our bid is confidential and has been passed to the Strategic Rail Authority. It is not appropriate for us to go into detail."

But Stan Herschel, York organiser for the RMT, said: "The loss of York as a headquarters would be a devastating blow. Staff should be staying where they are, regardless of who wins the franchise and where it is. There will be no compulsory movement and, if that was the case, we would be in dispute. We would not take it lying down."

FirstGroup and Keolis yesterday signed contracts to operate the new TransPennine franchise. The new company says an unknown number of managerial and administrative jobs will remain in York, while others will stay east of the Pennines - possibly in York or Leeds.

Updated: 10:46 Thursday, September 25, 2003