4th Jul 2006 07:01
Go-Ahead Group PLC04 July 2006 4 July 2006 The Go-Ahead Group plc ("Go-Ahead" or the "Group") Pre-close Trading Update Go-Ahead announces its pre-close trading update for the year ending 1 July 2006. The Group has continued to trade in line with management's overall expectationsfor the year. As anticipated, the operating margin for the Group's bus division has improvedslightly in the second half, reversing the trend of the recent past. This isdespite the initial integration costs of the new Birmingham operations in thesecond half of the year. The Group's bus business in London has deliveredanother good performance, with continued growth in revenues and industry-leadingquality of service, generating performance bonus payments from Transport forLondon. Increased fuel costs, up some £11 million across the division year onyear, and wage inflation have impacted the deregulated bus business. Goodprogress has been made, however, with ongoing actions to address these costpressures, including reviewing pricing policies, labour and fuel efficiencyinitiatives, depot development and other structural changes to the businesses.The resulting benefits should be seen during the next financial year. The rail division has delivered a good performance, with continued operatingquality improvements at Southern and a favourable result from Thameslink in theperiod up to the expiry of the franchise at the end of March. The SoutheasternTrains franchise has also performed well in the short period since taking overthe operation in April. Prospects for this new franchise remain encouraging. Interms of further rail opportunities, Govia has been shortlisted by Transport forLondon for the London Rail Concession and intends to bid for both the newlydefined West Midlands and East Midlands franchises. Trading in the aviation services division continues to improve, with the PlaneHanding cargo operations performing well. Further progress has been made ataviance although the number of aircraft turnarounds has been lower than expectedin recent weeks. The performance at Meteor, our car parking business, has beensatisfactory. The Group's cash flow from operating activities remains strong. The results for the year ending 1 July 2006 are expected to be announced on 8September 2006. For further information, please contact: The Go-Ahead Group plc 0191 232 3123Ian Butcher, Group Finance Director Weber Shandwick Square Mile (WSSM) 020 7067 0700Richard Hews/Rachel Taylor/ Stephanie Badjonat Note to Editors: Go-Ahead is a key operator of commuter services in London and the South East.Through Govia, it is the franchise holder for Southern and Southeastern. Busservices include London Central and General, companies in North East England,West Midlands, Oxford, Brighton, Poole, Bournemouth, Southampton, Isle of Wightand routes in the Gatwick Airport and Crawley conurbation. The aviation and carparking businesses have nationwide coverage. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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