The concept arose in 2004, when Renaissance Trains entered negotiations with Network Rail for track access rights in order to operate services between the Glasgow, North West England and East Midlands. The initial proposal advocated running one train per day between Glasgow and Preston where the train would divide with separate portions for Liverpool and Nottingham.
In 2004, Renaissance Trains began talks with Network Rail about track access rights to operate services between Glasgow, North West England, and East Midlands. The initial proposal was to run one train per day from Glasgow to Preston, which would then be split into separate segments for Liverpool and Nottingham.