Croydon's Advisory Forum on Active, Sustainable and Accessible Transport convened on Tuesday to discuss the upcoming nationalisation of Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), which operates rail services in the south east of England, including those through Croydon.
The nationalisation, set to take effect on 31 May next year, will see GTR enter public ownership. Martin Darby, public affairs manager at Govia Thameslink Railway, assured the forum that customers would not experience significant immediate changes. He also noted aspirations to increase services around the Croydon borough area by lengthening trains or running extra trains, though he acknowledged practical limitations related to rolling stock availability.
Once we enter public ownership, all our employees would get transferred over to a new company structure with inside the part of the transport operator, but our existing services, ticketing arrangements, and then employee practices internally would all get kept as is,
Darby said. So customers wouldn't see any changes to what they actually see day-to-day in terms of the service.
While the immediate impact on passengers is expected to be minimal, the long-term structure of GTR within the broader Great British Railway framework, slated for 2027, remains uncertain. Darby explained that discussions are ongoing regarding how GTR will integrate into Network Rail routes, given its services cross into multiple network rail areas.
Darby also addressed concerns about potential industrial action, stating that he did not anticipate any friction or changes for customers as part of the nationalisation. He noted that three other operators – Southwestern, CTC, and Greater Anglia – have already undergone similar transitions relatively seamlessly
.
In addition to the nationalisation discussion, Darby mentioned upcoming timetable changes in December, including extra services for Norwood Junction and additional off-peak services for Sun's Dead and Riddlesdown on Thursdays and Fridays, and throughout the week during school holidays.
