History was been made this week as South Western Railway (SWR) services becomes the first to transfer back into public control under the new legislation, ending almost 30 years of fragmentation and waste under privatisation.  

Great British Railways won’t just be the name of the new nationally owned railway, it symbolises a complete reset that will mark the high standard of service and delivery the public should expect to receive.   

Speaking from South Western Railway’s depot in Bournemouth, the Transport Secretary was clear that operators will have to earn the right to be called “Great British Railways”.

Starting with SWR, each operator will have to meet rigorous, bespoke performance standards on things like punctuality, cancellation and passenger experience, so we can rebuild a world class public service.  

Two thirds of Britons have already expressed their support for public ownership, which will save the taxpayer up to £150 million a year in fees alone and ensure every penny can be spent for the benefit of passengers. 

Public ownership is a vital first step in kick-starting the cultural reset needed to instil a sense of pride back into the railways, moving away from 14 siloed train operators, each with their own staff, incentives and competing commercial motivations.  

A new nationally owned body, Great British Railways, will manage track and train, with a sole focus of delivering for the public. As set out in the King’s Speech, we will introduce legislation to create Great British Railways this session.

By bringing track and train together Great British Railways will enable operations to run more seamlessly, bringing accountability and reliability back into the railways and in turn helping to reduce delays and cancellations. 

This will get more people using our trains to travel to work, education and for leisure – boosting both the national and regional economies as part of the Government’s Plan for Change.   

 Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander said: “Today is a watershed moment in our work to return the railways to the service of passengers. Trains from Waterloo to Weymouth, Bournemouth and Exeter, will be run by the public, for the public.

But I know that most users of the railway don’t spend much time thinking about who runs the trains – they just want them to work. That’s why operators will have to meet rigorous performance standards and earn the right to be called Great British Railways.

We have a generational opportunity to restore national pride in our railways and I will not waste it.”

This follows the passing of the Public Ownership Act in November – one of the first major pieces of legislation to be delivered under the current Government – showing its commitment to putting an end to unreliable services and private profiteering at the expense of passengers.    

All passenger services operating under contracts with the Department will return to public ownership by the end of 2027 and will eventually be integrated into Great British Railways. Services are being transferred after contracts reach the end of their minimum term, or where they can be ended early, ensuring taxpayers pay no additional costs for breaking contracts.   

Lawrence Bowman, Managing Director of Southern Western Railway said: “I’m excited to join and lead the excellent team at South Western Railway, who come to work every day to deliver the best possible service for our customers, and moving into public ownership will make it easier for them to do so. 

My immediate priority is to work with colleagues to develop a plan for SWR, that will make the most of the new simpler industry processes to deliver improvements in reliability and an increase in capacity. 

Over the coming years I will focus on ensuring SWR moves into Great British Railways as a truly integrated industry-leading operation that delivers an excellent service to its passengers and the local communities we serve.”

Ben Plowden, Chief Executive of Campaign for Better Transport, said: “Today marks a turning point for Britain’s railways and it’s good to see the Government’s plans for reforming the railways continuing at pace.

The creation of Great British Railways presents a once in a generation opportunity to change how the rail system works – structurally, financially and operationally – and put passengers and freight operators first.”

To commemorate this historic moment, the Secretary of State also unveiled a new coming soon logo on what will be the first publicly owned South Western Railway service to leave Waterloo at 06.14 today [Sunday 25 May], reiterating that our railways are coming back into the hands of the public.    

Digital screens at Waterloo will display the new ‘coming soon’ logo from 06.00 and a special Tannoy announcement celebrating the first publicly owned SWR service leaving the station. Displays at other SWR stations will also show the new ‘coming soon’ logo from today