Thameslink is a mainline route on the British railway network, running from Bedford, Luton, St Albans City, Peterborough, Welwyn Garden City, London Blackfriars and Cambridge via central London to Sutton, Orpington, Sevenoaks, Rainham, Horsham, Three Bridges, Brighton and East Grinstead. The network opened as a through service in 1988, with severe overcrowding by 1998, carrying more than 28,000 passengers in the morning peak. All the services are currently operated by Govia Thameslink Railway. Parts of the network, from Bedford to Three Bridges, run 24 hours a day, except on early Sunday mornings and during maintenance periods.
Gatwick Express is an express rail passenger service between London Victoria, Gatwick Airport, and Brighton in South East England. It is the brand name used by the Govia Thameslink Railway train operating company on the Gatwick Express route of the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise.
Southern is the brand name used by the Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) train operating company on the Southern routes of the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise in England. It is a subsidiary of Govia, a joint venture between transport groups Go-Ahead and Keolis, and has operated the South Central franchise since August 2001 and the Gatwick Express service since June 2008. When the passenger rail franchise was subsumed into GTR, Southern was split from Gatwick Express and the two became separate brands, alongside the Thameslink and Great Northern brands.
South Eastern Trains was a publicly owned train operating company that operated the South Eastern Passenger Rail Franchise between November 2003, when it took over from Connex South Eastern, and 1 April 2006, when Southeastern began operating the new Integrated Kent franchise.
In the railway system of Great Britain, a train operating company (TOC) is a railway undertaking operating passenger trains under the collective National Rail brand. TOCs have existed since the privatisation of the network under the Railways Act 1993.
The Go-Ahead Group Limited is a multi-national transport group based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. While the majority of its operations are within Great Britain, it also operates services in Ireland, Australia, Singapore, and Norway. Go-Ahead was formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange prior to being purchased by Kinetic Group and Globalvia by 2022.
Elmers End is a railway station and tram terminus in Elmers End, south London, England. It is in the London Borough of Bromley and on the railway it is 11 miles 7 chains (17.8 km) down the line from London Charing Cross.
The Brighton Main Line is a railway line in southern England linking London to Brighton. It starts at two termini in the capital, London Victoria and London Bridge, and the branches from each meet at East Croydon, from where the route continues southwards via Gatwick Airport to the coast. The line serves the suburbs of South London, as well as the towns of Redhill, Horley, Crawley, Haywards Heath and Burgess Hill.
Sydenham is a railway station in Sydenham in the London Borough of Lewisham, South London. Originally opened in 1839, the station is located on the former Croydon Canal, which is now a branch of the Brighton Main Line, often known as the Sydenham Corridor. Sydenham falls within Travelcard Zone 3 and is served by London Overground and Southern. The station is 6 miles 32 chains down the line from London Bridge.
Lower Sydenham railway station is located on the boundary of the London Borough of Bromley and the London Borough of Lewisham in south-east London. It is 9 miles 2 chains (14.5 km) measured from London Charing Cross.
New Beckenham railway station serves Beckenham in the London Borough of Bromley in south-east London, in Travelcard Zone 4. It is 9 miles 44 chains (15.4 km) measured from London Charing Cross.
Clock House railway station is in the London Borough of Bromley in south east London, in Travelcard Zone 4 between Beckenham and Penge. It is 10 miles 23 chains (16.6 km) down the line from London Charing Cross. The station and all trains serving it are operated by Southeastern on the Hayes line.
The Southern Region was a region of British Railways from 1948 until 1992 when railways were re-privatised. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right in the 1980s. The region covered south London, southern England and the south coast, including the busy commuter belt areas of Kent, Sussex and Surrey. The region was largely based upon the former Southern Railway area.
Connex South Eastern was a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by Connex that operated the South Eastern franchise from October 1996 until November 2003.
Govia is a transport company based in the United Kingdom. It was formed in November 1996 as a joint venture between Go-Ahead Group (65%) and Keolis (35%) to bid for rail franchises during the privatisation of British Rail.
Thameslink was a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by Govia that operated the Thameslink franchise between March 1997 and March 2006.
Network SouthCentral (NSC) was a shadow franchise that existed from 4 February 1994 to 13 October 1996, when Connex South Central took over the running of the franchise. The franchise is now part of the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise operated by Govia Thameslink Railway under the Southern brand. As with all shadow franchises, Network SouthCentral was a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Railways Board.
Passenger rail franchising in Great Britain is the system of contracting the operation of the passenger services on the railways of Great Britain to private companies, which has been in effect since 1996 and was greatly altered in 2020, with rail franchising being effectively abolished in May 2021.
The South Eastern franchise, also known as the Integrated Kent franchise, is a railway franchise for the provision of passenger services between London and Kent in South East England.
Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) is a British train operating company that operates the TSGN rail franchise. Within the franchise, GTR runs trains under the sub-brands: Thameslink, Great Northern, Southern, and Gatwick Express. GTR is a subsidiary of Govia, which is itself a joint venture between the British Go-Ahead Group (65%) and French company Keolis (35%).
