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Train operating companies (TOCs)


BBT takes a look at each operator and what investments they are making. All operators of long-distance scheduled passenger services (except Eurostar) are listed here, with the franchise expiry date in brackets. Not included are local operators C2C, London Overground and Merseyrail.


ARRIVA TRAINS WALES (OCTOBER 2018) Owned by: Arriva Main routes: Most services within Wales, and to Birmingham and Manchester. A new upgraded service from North Wales to Manchester was introduced last year.


CALEDONIAN SLEEPER (MARCH 2030) Owned by: Serco Main routes: Overnight services from London to Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness and Fort William. It is spending £100 million on 75 new carriag- es to be introduced from 2018, including en suite bathrooms for first class passengers, cradle seats in standard class and free wifi able to stream films.


CHILTERN RAILWAYS (DECEMBER 2021) Owned by: Arriva Main routes: London to Aylesbury, Oxford and Birmingham.


Business Zone – offering first-class space and comfort for a modest supplement – is available on key business trains between Marylebone and Birmingham. A new route to Oxford Parkway opened in late 2015.


CROSSCOUNTRY (NOVEMBER 2019) Owned by: Arriva Main routes: Birmingham to the South West, South coast, Cardiff, Nottingham, Stansted, Manchester, Leeds, the North East and Scotland. It is the first operator to offer advance tickets within 15 minutes of trains departing, for bookings through Trainline and Evolvi.


EAST MIDLANDS TRAINS (MARCH 2018) Owned by: Stagecoach Main routes: London to Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and Sheffield; Norwich to Liverpool.


Modest improvements to wifi and better availability of free breakfast in first class have been made in advance of franchise renewal. Electrification and new trains are due by 2023.


88 BBT September/October 2016


GRAND CENTRAL (OPEN ACCESS OPERATOR) Owned by: Arriva Main routes: London to Bradford, York and Sunderland.


It is the top performing operator in the spring 2016 National Rail Passenger Survey by Transport Focus, with 96 per cent of pas- sengers satisfied against a national average of 80 per cent.


GREAT NORTHERN (SEPTEMBER 2021) Owned by: Govia Thameslink Railway, part of the Go-Ahead Group/Keolis joint venture Main routes: London to Cambridge and King’s Lynn; local services around London. To be combined with the Southern and Thameslink franchises.


GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY (MARCH 2019) Owned by: Firstgroup Main routes: London to the West Country, South Wales and Cotswolds; regional ser- vices in the South West and Thames Valley. Electrification of the London to Oxford, Newbury, Bristol and South Wales routes is under way in a £7.5 billion investment by Network Rail, and the franchise may be extended while this is completed. The government is funding a new fleet of Intercity Express electric and bi-modal trains, which will increase capacity by up to 25 per cent and achieve modest journey time reductions from 2017.


Great Western Railway


GREATER ANGLIA (2025)


Owned by: Abellio Main routes: London-Norwich; Stansted Express; services throughout East Anglia. Abellio beat off challenges by Firstgroup and National Express to take over the franchise, with the new deal running from October. It will spend £1.4 billion on over 1,000 new British-built carriages being introduced in 2019-20, reducing the fastest London- Norwich journey time to 90 minutes.


HEATHROW EXPRESS (NON-FRANCHISED OPERATOR) Owned by: Heathrow Airport Holdings Main route: London Paddington to Heathrow airport. The 15-minute journey time to Heathrow is very popular but, although cheaper advance fares from £5.50 are available, the ‘turn up and go’ fare in the morning peak has increased to £24 (£32 in business class). The Heathrow Connect service will become part of the new Crossrail route through central London in 2018.


HULL TRAINS (OPEN ACCESS OPERATOR) Owned by: Firstgroup Main route: London to Hull. New bi-modal trains are to be ordered to use electric power between London and


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