Addleshaw Goddard's Rail team has been appointed to Tier 1 of the Department for Transport’s (DfT's) inaugural rail panel alongside Ashurst, DLA Piper and Eversheds.

The milestone appointment will see the four tier 1 firms undertake all complex long-term projects including; rail franchise competitions, major rolling stock procurements and infrastructure projects in a significant reduction in the number of firms eligible to bid for these key projects. 

Head of Transport, Paul Hirst said: “We are delighted to be appointed to the tier 1 panel – it is a huge accolade for our rail and wider transport team. Our national team is going from strength to strength and we continue to build our capacity at all levels. We're looking forward to continuing to work closely with the Department on a fascinating pipeline of rail infrastructure and rolling stock projects and the ongoing programme of franchise competitions”.

The team leading on the appointment included Paul Hirst, Ursula Gould, Bruce Kilpatrick, Michael Rainey, Alex Clayton and Andrew Carter.

Recognised as one of the most experienced in the sector, the AG Transport team has worked on high-profile mandates including; advising the DfT on both the West Coast Partnership and West Midlands franchise competitions, advising Hitachi Rail Europe on a series of projects for the supply and maintenance for fleets of AT300 bi-mode trains and advising Keolis/Amey Rail on its successful bid for the £500 million Manchester Metrolink O&M Concession.