Three companies have been shortlisted to run the East Midlands Trains network.
The current franchise is up for renewal by the Government and is due to end on March 4 2018, but is being extended by up to a year.
Ministers have now named the three companies who are in the running; current operators Stagecoach, First Trenitalia and Arriva Rail.
The Government has said whoever takes over will need to show how they will cope with increasing demand on routes to London St Pancras, but also for local crowded services like Derby-Crewe.
But ministers have been criticised by local MPs for not committing to a planned electrification of the Midland Mainline – which operators say is vital to improve services.
Rail Minister Paul Maynard said: “A flourishing rail network brings real growth and prosperity to the region it serves. That is why we are making the biggest investment in the national rail network in more than 100 years to deliver the safer, faster and more comfortable journeys that passengers want.
“At the same time, Network Rail is working on improvements which by 2019 will enable the next East Midlands franchise to deliver more carriages and faster journeys over the whole route, including almost twice as many seats into London St Pancras in the peak hours.
“I am delighted that all these first-class companies have demonstrated their confidence in our vision for the future of the rail industry in Great Britain by bidding for this key franchise.”
However, in November the Government was accused of breaking promises after it refused to give a date for a rail upgrade project seen as ‘vital’ for East Midlands Trains and Nottinghamshire.
Local MPs and Network Rail want to see the Midland Mainline, which runs through Nottingham, electrified.
The upgrade, involving trains running on overhead power lines instead of fuel, would mean faster journey times between Nottingham, London and Sheffield.
It would also save train operators around £60 million a year, which they say could be invested back into the network.
But Mr Maynard refused to confirm whether the scheme would still go ahead and be finished by 2023 – a deadline promised by the previous Government in 2015.
The climbdown prompted an angry reaction from Nottingham MPs.
Nottingham South’s Labour MP Lilian Greenwood called the response “shameful” while Gedling Labour MP Vernon Coaker said the lack of backing was “not good enough”.
A decision on the East Midlands franchise is expected later this year.
