Great Western Railway to be Nationalised in December
The government has announced that Great Western Railway (GWR) will be nationalised in December, marking another step in Labour's plan to bring all passenger rail services back into public ownership. The operator, which has been privately run for 30 years primarily by First Group, will become the 11th train operator on the national railway to be returned to public control.
When the Labour government was elected in 2024, legislation was immediately passed to renationalise all passenger trains as soon as contracts allow, a process expected to conclude by the end of 2027. The Department for Transport (DfT) has set the date for GWR's nationalisation as 13 December, coinciding with the introduction of new timetables across the country.
GWR has collaborated closely with the DfT in recent years on upgrading the mainline and introducing a new fleet of intercity trains. The operator connects Paddington station in west London to west and south-west England and south Wales, as well as running services to Oxford and Hereford.
Other Operators Facing Nationalisation
Govia Thameslink Railway, the largest commuter service operating Southern, Thameslink, Gatwick Express and Great Northern services around London, is set to be nationalised at the end of May. Chiltern Railways will follow in September this year. After GWR's transition, three other national rail operators will remain in private ownership next year: Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry and East Midlands Railway.
A DfT spokesperson said: “This is another significant moment for the government’s flagship public ownership programme and brings a simpler, more reliable network under Great British Railways a step closer. The government is delivering on its commitment to bring services back into public ownership and put passengers, not shareholders, at the heart of our railways.”
Integration with Network Rail
Steps have already been taken to integrate the management of train operators and Network Rail, which maintains track and rail infrastructure, where trains have returned to public ownership. Great British Railways (GBR) will be headquartered in Derby, but most daily rail operations will be devolved to regions, some of which are already run as combined track and train units.
Southeastern was the first operator to have an overall managing director with responsibility for both track and train, providing a single point of accountability that ministers hope will raise standards, improve performance, and reduce costs. This model has also been established at South Western Railway and in Anglia since the privatisation of Greater Anglia. It is not yet known whether GWR will immediately adopt this structure in December.
