GTR, the UK’s largest train operating company, joins the fast-growing family of publicly owned operators from this weekend (Sunday 31 May 2026).
Responsible for 1 in 6 passenger rail journeys in Britain, GTR keeps the South East moving, delivering one of the UK’s most extensive rail networks and carrying hundreds of millions of passengers each year.
A renationalised GTR will deliver a range of initiatives to improve performance and passenger experience under public ownership, such as doubling the number of services between Gatwick Airport and London Victoria every hour and training 110 new Travel Safe Officers to crack down on anti-social behaviour on the network.
“From this Sunday, millions of passengers across the South East and East of England will be travelling on rail services back in public hands – run for the public good, not private profit,” said Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander.
“Bringing Britain’s largest train operator into public ownership is a defining moment in our reform of the railway. It gives us an opportunity to tackle the bread and butter issues people want, like driving down cancellations and improving the frequency of services to Gatwick Airport.
“As we set up Great British Railways, we’re putting passengers first, fixing what’s broken, and delivering a railway people can rely on – one that rebuilds trust, regenerates communities and delivers the high standards passengers expect and deserve.”
GTR’s 100 day plan will focus on creating a reliable service that delivers better on-board experience. The plan includes measures to:
- Double Gatwick Express services: easier travel for holiday makers with double the number of Gatwick Express trains each hour between Gatwick Airport and London Victoria from December and more early morning services on Saturdays and Mondays from this summer. Additional Great Northern services will also commence in December.
- Recruit more Drivers to reduce delays: GTR’s ongoing train crew recruitment will deliver an additional 75 drivers across Thameslink and Great Northern this year as drivers complete their training, with an uplift of 40 drivers at Southern and Gatwick Express this year too. The increase in drivers will help improve train crew availability and reduce cancellations.
- Create safer, cleaner toilets: Thameslink train toilets are being refreshed to crack down on graffiti and provide a better experience for passengers. GTR will resurface toilet interiors on two trains every week with over half the fleet completed by the end of the year.110 Travel Safe Officers are also being trained to support revenue protection, improve security and combat anti-social behaviour.
- Upgrade signalling to reduce cancellations: Secondary signalling system between Farringdon and Blackfriars to reduce delays and boost resilience. Improvements expected to prevent over 1,000 cancellations a year.
- Establish better customer communication: passengers will be able to get support when there is disruption from staff directly via a customer support WhatsApp channel. GTR is also adding more online payment options for customers.
GTR’s Thameslink, Great Northern, Southern and Gatwick Express services bring a strong track record, contributing £3.2 billion to the UK economy and supporting 40,000 jobs in 2025. With government support, Thameslink and Great Northern services will also support the delivery of thousands of new homes, as well as schools and employment space, as they begin stopping at the new Cambridge South station from Sunday 28 June.
Chief Operating Officer John Whitehurst said: “This is a railway that carries millions of people to work, to school, and to see friends and family every single day. From this Sunday every one of them will be on a publicly owned service, which is a responsibility we take seriously and one we have been preparing for.
“We have spent the past year building the foundations, and bringing even deeper integration into our operations with Network Rail, with a single focus on what’s right for our customers and communities.
“That work means customers are already getting a railway that’s been transforming, and public ownership gives us the chance to go further to deliver the railway that millions of people across the South East deserve.”
Image credit: DfT