It has been announced that services across southern England and East Anglia will be back in public control following the reveal of the first train service operators to come under the new public ownership bill.

South Western Railway will be the first to come into public ownership from May 2025, followed by c2c in July and Greater Anglia in autumn.

The announcement has been made days after the Public Ownership Bill received royal assent on 28 November 2024. 

Now the new bill is in place, the Department for transport (DfT) has said it will improve reliability and boost the economy as the government aims to clamp down on delays and cancellations.

The DfT has pledged that ‘every penny’ will be spent on services rather than private shareholders. 

As franchising contracts are to be scrapped, the government said this will save up to £150 million a year at no additional cost to the taxpayer.

Newly appointed Transport Secretary, Heidi Alexander said: “Starting with journeys on South Western Railway, we’re switching tracks by bringing services back under public control to create a reliable rail network that puts customers first.

“Our broken railways are finally on the fast track to repairing and rebuilding a system that the British public can trust and be proud of again.”

The publicly run services will be managed by DfT Operator Limited – previously known as DfT Operator of Last Resort Holdings Limited (DOHL).

The government confirmed that this entity will eventually be integrated into Great British Railways (GBR).

Railway Industry Association (RIA) Chief Executive, Darren Caplan, said: “Today’s announcement is an important milestone on the journey to a restructured railway.

“The UK supply chain will work with and support the government’s plans to deliver improved rail performance and reliability, as we together develop world-class rail, both track and train.”

“There is now a real opportunity to provide more certainty and visibility over work plans, which will help a reformed railway be a catalyst for boosting growth and connectivity across the nations and regions of the UK, with better services for rail customers – passengers and freight – and ultimately ensure enhanced value for money for the taxpayer,” he added.

In the new year, the government said it will be setting out plans for how Shadow GBR will be delivering on its initial priorities