Chiltern Railways has transferred into public ownership, becoming the sixth UK operator to do so, with the government pledging more services, new trains and station upgrades for passengers across London, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and the West Midlands.
Chiltern Railways services moved into public ownership on Sunday 20 September 2026, becoming the sixth operator to transfer under the UK Government’s programme to bring rail services back under public control ahead of the creation of Great British Railways (GBR).
Chiltern Railways connects London Marylebone with communities across Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and the West Midlands. The Department for Transport said the transfer will support more reliable trains for passengers who rely on the network daily for work, school and family visits, paving the way for more services and seats, new trains, upgraded stations and better onboard facilities.
Rail Minister Lord Hendy said: “From this Sunday, Chiltern Railways passengers will be travelling on rail services back in public hands. Every transfer into public ownership gives us the chance to tackle the bread-and-butter issues people care about, more frequent, comfortable trains that turn up on time. As we set up Great British Railways, we’re putting passengers first. 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.”
25 extra services and new trains from December
From December, 25 additional daily services will be introduced, providing almost 10,000 extra seats each weekday, nearly 5,000 on Saturdays and more than 3,000 on Sundays, including a half hourly service throughout the day on the Chiltern Mainline between London and Birmingham. Six more Chiltern Explorer trains will enter service as part of the December timetable, completing a fleet of 13 and providing improved accessibility, air conditioning and enhanced wifi between London and the West Midlands.
A £12 million refurbishment of Chiltern’s Class 168 fleet will continue, with upgraded wifi, power and USB charging at every seat and refreshed interiors due by 2028. Station investment will include refurbished toilets, deep cleaning and graffiti removal, alongside new signage at five of Chiltern’s busiest stations, upgraded information screens, help points and accessible ramps, for the almost 20 million passengers who use the network annually. From Sunday, passengers whose train is cancelled will also be able to use another operator’s service at no extra cost.
Public ownership also provides an opportunity to deliver East West Rail, according to the Department for Transport.
Tony Baxter, interim managing director of Chiltern Railways, said: “Sunday is a significant milestone for Chiltern Railways and we look forward to working together with the wider rail industry to deliver a better railway for everyone in Great Britain. Over the next 12 months, our customers in London, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and the West Midlands will benefit from more new trains, more services, thousands of additional seats, improvements to stations and on-board facilities and the ability to use their ticket on other operators when faced with disruption.”
The Government said the wider public ownership programme has already delivered frozen fares for the first time in 30 years and 76,000 extra seats a week across the network, with new GBR trains set to be built in Britain to serve major cities in the north. The next operator to transfer will be Great Western Railway on 13 December 2026, ahead of completion of the full programme by the end of 2027.
No comments yet