On Sunday 25th May at 6:14am, the first South Western Railway service operating under public ownership departed from Waterloo Station, marking the end of almost 30 years under privatisation.
This follows the passing of the Public Ownership Act in November 2024, one of the first major pieces of legislation to be delivered under the current Labour Government and shows the Government’s commitment to putting an end to unreliable services and private profiteering at the expense of passengers.
The Public Ownership Act was enacted on 28th November 2024 and marked a shift in rail policy in the UK by enabling the gradual renationalisation of most passenger train services across Great Britain. The legislation was brought in by the current Labour Government in line with our commitment to bring railways back under public control and amends the Railways Act 1993 to facilitate this transition.
This really matters. Far too many people pay far too high a price for train tickets while passengers suffer also from a lack of join up between Network Rail overseeing the repairs on tracks and engineering works and the Train Operating Companies. Great British Railways will bring these functions under one organisation bringing much more efficiency and reducing costs.
The first operator to transition under the new framework was South Western Railway, which came under public control last weekend. Public ownership is a vital step in bringing back a sense of pride into British railways. The renationalisation of South Western Railway will help British trains and tracks move away from incentives and competing commercial motivations, to a focus on the needs of passengers.
This is the first step the Labour Government have taken in bringing most passenger train services into public ownership with the Bill to create Great British Railways being introduced this year. Most of the railways will be shifted to being managed by one body, Great British Railways, with the sole focus of delivering for the public. 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.
With 153.2 million passengers taking South Western Railway in 2023/24, approximately 419,860 passengers use South Western Railway daily. The renationalisation of South Western Railway will enable operations to run more seamlessly, bringing accountability and reliability back into the railways and in turn helping to reduce delays and cancellations for the hundreds of thousands of daily passengers by bringing track and train together as part of the Government’s Plan for Change.
In our community, there were an estimated 3,249,288 entries and exits at Feltham station in 2023/24 and an estimated 823,164 in Hounslow as thousands of people use our stations daily to get to work, school or for leisure. A reliable train service helps those who travel by train to plan their journey accurately.
Speaking about the renationalisation of South Western Railway on Sunday 25th May, my colleague 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 people don’t care who runs the railway – they just want them to work. That’s why operators coming into public ownership 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.”
To ensure that Great British Railway will have the high standard of service and delivery the public deserve, 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.
It is time that our railways became more efficient, reliable and more affordable and I am very proud that our Labour Government is taking these vital steps that will transform our railways not just for today but for generations to come.