Virgin Trains has today secured an extension on its contract to run the West Coast Main Line rail service from London to Scotland via the West Midlands.
The company has promised to increase capacity on the service following the franchise award which expires in March 2017.
The operator said there would be "significant improvements" for customers with the introduction of free superfast WiFi, more seats and new services.
Virgin Trains lost out in 2012 to FirstGroup in the battle for a new 13-year West Coast franchise but the process was scrapped by the Department for Transport due to errors in the bidding process.
It resulted in a temporary deal allowing Virgin to run the service until November 2014.
Virgin is paying £430 million to the Government over the course of the contact which, at £155.3 million a year, is a 58 per cent increase on the £98.1 million a year paid in the current short-term management contract.
The franchise serves more than 30 million passengers a year and covers areas including London, the West Midlands, Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Strathclyde and Lothian.
Virgin said 21 trains would have one of their first class carriages converted to standard class, resulting in a net increase of 2,100 seats per day.
It will also aim to start new direct services between Shrewsbury, Blackpool and London from December.
The Office of Rail Regulation has previously rejected an application by Virgin to run additional services because of limited capacity.
Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: "This deal will provide thousands more seats and better journeys for the tens of thousands of passengers who use these services every day.
"The West Coast provides a vital artery between London and Scotland and it is crucial we do everything we can to improve services on this much-used route."
A new long-term franchise is due to commence in 2017.
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