Train operators in Great Britain

The rail infrastructure of Great Britain is managed by Network Rail (being absorbed into Great British Railways), with passenger services operated by a fragmented system of private franchises — though the government has been progressively bringing operators under public control following years of delays and financial difficulties.

Network length
16,000 km

Number of operators
25

Major train operators in Great Britain

  • London North Eastern Railway

    British rail company that operates most train services on the East Coast Main Line.

    Explore London North Eastern Railway

  • Great Western Railway

    British rail company that operates train services in the west of England and south Wales as well as services between London and that region. It also operates the Night Riviera sleeper service.

    Explore Great Western Railway

  • Avanti West Coast

    British train company that operates services on the West Coast Main Line.

    Explore Avanti West Coast

  • ScotRail

    Rail company owned by the Scottish government

    Explore ScotRail

  • CrossCountry

    British train company

    Explore CrossCountry

Other operators in Great Britain

  • c2c

    British state-owned rail company operating in East London and Essex

  • Caledonian Sleeper

    Rail company operating the Caledonian Sleeper night train

  • Chiltern Railways

    Rail company operating in Great Britain

  • East Midlands Railway

    Train company operating in England's East Midlands region

  • Eurostar

    High-speed international train service connecting major hubs in France, Belgium, Germany, the Uk and the Netherlands.

  • Gatwick Express

    Fast airport shuttle train to London Gatwick Airport

  • Greater Anglia

    British state-owned rail company operating in the east of England

  • Great Northern

    Train operating company in Britain running trains running trains on the southern end of the East Coast Main Line,

  • Heathrow Express

    Rail company running fast and frequent services between London Heathrow airport and London Paddington.

  • Hull Trains

    British open-access operator running trains between Hull and London

  • London Overground

    London rail network operated by First Group

  • Lumo

    Fast, long-distance open-access operator in the UK

  • Merseyrail

    Train operating company in the 🇬🇧 UK

  • Northern

    State-owned British rail company ooperating in the north of England

  • Southeastern

    British state-owned rail company running trains in the South-east of England

  • Southern

    British rail operator running train services in the greater London area

  • South Western Railway

    British state-owned railway company running trains in London and south-west England

  • Thameslink

    Train operating company in Great Britain

  • TransPennine Express

    Train operating company running trains in the north of England and Scotland

  • Transport for Wales

    Train company owned by the Welsh government and running services in Wales

  • West Midlands Railway

    British state-own rail company running trains in the West Midlands and on the West Coast Main Line

Simplify your train ticketing in Great Britain

Best-in-class booking tools and APIs for European train tickets.

Other countries