The Tories have accused a train company of “virtue-signalling nonsense” after one of its trains was wrapped in a theme celebrating diversity. The artwork on the new Avanti West Coast celebrates the ethnicity of its workforce and the communities it serves.
But Shadow Transport Secretary Gareth Bacon criticised the move, telling The Telegraph: “Avanti West Coast can’t run a train on time, but they can find the time and money for virtue-signalling nonsense. While passengers are stranded on platforms waiting for services that never show up, Avanti are busy patting themselves on the back for colourful train paint jobs. This nonsense won’t fix the delays, cancellations, and endless chaos that Labour have caused with their ‘no-strings’ pay giveaway to the unions.
“Passengers need functioning rail services and deserve better than this farce.”
Baraka Carberry, a digital artist who created the work for Avanti West Coast, said it shows “scenes of people, culture, colours and joy”.
The design, known as Together We Roll, stretches across all seven carriages of a new Evero train which is set to welcome passengers this summer.
It was produced following a suggestion from the operator’s frontline workers.
Avanti West Coast’s customer experience director, Kathryn O’Brien, said there is “nothing like this [the design]” on the UK’s railways.
“We’re incredibly proud of this unique train and who it represents,” she said.
“By bringing to life the vibrant communities we serve and our employees, we hope to highlight the many people of different cultures, backgrounds and heritage who have a connection to the railway.”
She added there is “still more to be done” at Avanti West Coast and across the wider rail industry to have a workforce that is “representative of society and the communities we serve”.
Rail Minister Lord Hendy supported the artwork, saying: “Diversity is key to the success of any industry and creative work like this goes a long way in sparking conversations, encouraging inclusion and may inspire more people to choose a career in rail.”
Avanti West Coast, which runs trains on West Coast Main Line between London Euston and Scotland, in 2023 named a train Asquith Xavier after the first black person to work as a guard at Euston station in 1966.
In 2023, the company announced that one of its trains had been wrapped in a Pride theme.
The Express has contacted Avanti West Coast for a statement.