This Sunday (12 October), Greater Anglia’s services will transfer into public ownership under Great British Railways (GBR).
This will mean that half of Britain’s train operators will no longer be owned by private companies.
Greater Anglia is the third operator to return to public ownership under the Government’s Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act, while some had been brought into public ownership previously.
The public now owns c2c, Northern, TransPennine Express, Southeastern, LNER and South Western Railway, all of which are currently operated by DfT Operator Limited (DFTO).
The Department for Transport promises that Greater Anglia’s services will continue to improve, and highlights its new fleet of bi-mode trains, its two new stations, and its recent success in being named Rail Operator of the Year at the National Transport Awards 2025.
The Department also promises “integrated leadership” across publicly owned train operators and Network Rail routes, which will deliver improvements to services.
The next operator to transfer into public ownership will be West Midlands Trains, on 1 February 2026. Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) will follow on 31 May 2026.
By the middle of 2026, eight in ten passenger rail journeys for which the DfT is responsible will be owned by the public.
The next operators to transfer to public ownership will be Chiltern Railways and Great Western Railways. The Secretary of State for Transport will decide when exactly this will happen “in due course”.
The DfT points out that there have already been benefits for passengers. Southeastern and LNER are among the top five operators nationally in terms of lowest cancellation rates, and Transpennine Express has improved its cancellation score by 34%. South Western Railway has tripled the number of new trains in service since entering public ownership.
It also highlights that passengers can now use tickets across publicly-owned operators during disruption, at no extra cost.
Legislation to establish Great British Railways (GBR) will be introduced this autumn.
“From this Sunday, passengers commuting into Norwich or heading for a day out in Cambridge will be travelling on services that are owned by the public, and run with their interests front of mind.
“We’re reforming a fragmented system and laying the foundations for a more reliable, efficient and accountable railway – one that puts passengers first and delivers the high standards they rightly expect.”
Transport Secretary, Heidi Alexander
Responses
Obviously it wouldn’t make much difference once DfT takes over Greater Anglia on Sunday and to bring it back into public ownership. And with Beaulieu Park railway station on the outskirts of Chelmsford, Essex that is due to open by the end of this month.
Plus with Govia Thameslink Railway to be nationalised and DfT to taken over on May 31st next year. Could this mean Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern (TSGN) franchises to be separated and to still continue on providing services for passengers commuting into and out of London.
Or could we see TSGN to be retained but GTR (Govia Thameslink Railway) to expire. And with Great Northern that have started using the ex-Greater Anglia Class 379 Electrostars on the King’s Cross-Peterborough, King’s Lynn, Cambridge and Letchworth Garden City routes.
And with Avanti West Coast, Chiltern Railways, East Midlands Railway, West Midlands Trains (West Midlands Railway and London Northwestern Railway), Crosscountry, Transpennine Express and Great Western Railway to be taken over by DfT and to be taken back to public ownership.