Chiltern Railways moves into public ownership in England
Rail Minister Lord Hendy said the transfer, the sixth since the government’s public ownership programme began, will add 25 extra daily services and almost 10,000 more seats on the Chiltern Mainline between London and Birmingham from December.
Chiltern Railways has moved into public ownership from 20 September, becoming the sixth operator to transfer under the government’s programme, the Department for Transport has said.
It is the first transfer since Govia Thameslink Railway moved into public ownership in May, and marks another step towards Great British Railways, the department said.
Rail Minister Lord Hendy said every transfer into public ownership gave the government “the chance to tackle the bread-and-butter issues people care about – more frequent, comfortable trains that turn up on time”.
Hendy added: “It will not happen overnight, but we will build a railway the country can trust and rely on and that will create growth, jobs and homes.”
The route connects London Marylebone with Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and the West Midlands, where overcrowding has become a daily frustration at peak times, the department said.
From 20 September, passengers whose train is cancelled will also be able to use another operator’s service at no extra cost, the department said.
From December, a new timetable will add 25 extra services each weekday, including a half-hourly service throughout the day on the Chiltern Mainline between London and Birmingham, the department said.
This will provide almost 10,000 more seats on weekdays, nearly 5,000 on Saturdays and more than 3,000 on Sundays, helping to tackle overcrowding.
Six more Chiltern Explorer trains will enter service as part of the December timetable, completing a fleet of 13 and improving accessibility, air conditioning and wifi, the department said.
A £12m refurbishment of the existing Class 168 fleet will also continue, adding wifi, power and USB charging at every seat, with refreshed interiors by 2028.
Stations will be improved with deep cleaning and refurbished toilets, and 200 previously closed car park spaces will reopen at Haddenham and Thame Parkway.
New signage at five of Chiltern’s busiest stations will also help the almost 20 million passengers who use the network each year, alongside upgraded information screens and accessible ramps, the department said.
Public ownership also gives a fresh opportunity to deliver East West Rail and its benefits for passengers, the department said.
Tony Baxter, interim managing director of Chiltern Railways, said Sunday was “a significant milestone” for the company, which looked forward to “working together with the wider rail industry to deliver a better railway for everyone in Great Britain”.
Bringing operators into public ownership ahead of GBR’s creation has already frozen fares for the first time in 30 years and added 76,000 extra seats a week across the network, the department said.
Great Western Railway is the next operator due to transfer into public ownership, on 13 December, ahead of the full programme’s completion by the end of 2027, the department said.
