South Western Railway (2017–2025)

First MTR South Western Trains Limited, trading as South Western Railway (SWR), was a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup (70%) and MTR Corporation (30%) which operated the South Western franchise between August 2017 and May 2025.

On 20 August 2017, SWR took over South Western franchise operations from the previous franchisee, Stagecoach-owned South West Trains.

SWR operated commuter services from its Central London terminus at to south west London, suburban services in the counties of Surrey, Hampshire, Berkshire and Dorset, as well as regional services in Devon, Somerset and Wiltshire. Its subsidiary Island Line operated services on the Isle of Wight.

Rolling stock changes have included a comprehensive refurbishment of existing units and the acquisition of new-build units from Bombardier to replace SWR's , and multiple units. The fleet operated on the Island Line was also replaced by the during 2021.

During April 2018, amid concerns of SWR's performance, the Transport Secretary, Chris Grayling, announced an independent review into SWR and Network Rail. Between 2 December 2019 and 2 January 2020, the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) undertook 27days of strikes. Further industrial action by SWR's staff was undertaken in 2022. In response to the decrease in passenger travel caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, SWR had considerably curtailed its services by mid-2020. In January 2020, SWR announced that they were in discussions with the government regarding the future of the franchise. In December 2020, it was announced that SWR's franchise would be abolished and replaced by a shorter management contract. In February 2023, the contract was extended to May 2025. In December 2024, the government announced that SWR's contract would not be renewed in 2025, and on 25 May 2025, the service was renationalised.

History During July 2015, the Department for Transport (DfT) abandoned efforts to negotiate an extension with the incumbent operator of the South Western franchise, South West Trains, (owned by British transport conglomerate Stagecoach) and announced that the South Western franchise would be re-tendered for in the coming years. This outcome was viewed by several industry commentators as being unexpected and inconvenient in its timing; the periodical Rail speculated that Stagecoach's rejection had been largely due to government officials feeling that the state was not receiving a sufficiently large share of the profits being generated by the franchise.

In February 2016, the DfT announced that two companies, FirstGroup and Stagecoach, had been shortlisted to bid for the next South Western franchise. During June 2016, MTR Corporation partnered with FirstGroup in its bid, taking a 30% shareholding in the joint venture. During July 2016, the DfT issued the Invitation to Tender.

Franchise award During March 2017, the DfT announced that the South Western franchise had been awarded to First/MTR. At the time, it was stated that its franchise period was to commence from 20 August 2017 and run through to 18 August 2024, although the deal had included an option for the DfT to extend it for a further 48 weeks.

The Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) held an inquiry into the awarding; during July 2017, it sought undertakings from First/MTR that it would not abuse its monopoly on services to the West of England, Dorset and Somerset, as FirstGroup also operated the Greater Western franchise in those regions. FirstGroup and MTR responded with an offer to implement a cap upon unregulated fares between London and Exeter as a mitigating measure; the CMA chose to accept this concession. On 20 August 2017, First/MTR took over South Western franchise operations, with services branded as South Western Railway (SWR).

By April 2018, concerns had reportedly grown over SWR's performance over previous months; there had been a noted rise in both the number of delayed services and outright cancellations. Due to these concerns, the Transport Secretary, Chris Grayling, announced an independent review into the performance of South Western Railway and Network Rail; the review was welcomed by Winchester's MP, Steve Brine. During July 2018, reports emerged that FirstGroup/MTR were in the process of renegotiating the SWR contract, allegedly due to the operator's inability to deliver on many of its promised improvements, as well as its declining performance and industrial action by its own staff.

Between 2 December 2019 and 2 January 2020, the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) undertook 27days of strikes. These were in protest to the potential introduction of DOO (driver only operation) on SWR's new fleet of Bombardier-built multiple units, which would thereby nullify the role of the guard.

In January 2020, SWR announced that they were in discussions with the government regarding the future of the franchise following a £137million loss, with termination of the contract being a possibility.

By mid-2020, SWR had considerably curtailed its services in response to the significant decline of passenger travel amid the COVID-19 pandemic. From 15 June 2020, both passengers and staff on public transport in England, including SWR services, were required to wear face coverings while travelling, and that anyone failing to do so would be liable to be refused travel or fined.

In December 2020, it was announced that terms for the abolition of the franchise system for SWR had been agreed, and that the company would be given a management contract to run until 1 April 2023 when the ERMA (Emergency Recovery Measures Agreement) for the franchise ends in March 2021. During October 2021, the contract was updated with a finish date of 28 May 2023, with an option to extend further if required by the DfT. In February 2023, the contract was further extended until May 2025.

SWR is one of several train operators impacted by the 2022–2024 United Kingdom railway strikes, which were the first national rail strikes in the UK for three decades. Its workers were amongst those participating in industrial action due to a dispute over pay and working conditions. The number of staff involved allowed SWR to remain capable of operating a minimal timetable on any of the planned dates for the strikes.

State ownership In December 2024, after the Starmer government passed legislation to re-nationalise passenger rail in Great Britain, the government announced that the South Western rail area would be taken back into state ownership following the expiry of South Western Railway's contract. South Western Railway was the first area to be re-nationalised. The DfT Operator owned South Western Railway Limited took over from SWR on 25 May 2025.

Services South Western Railway was the main operator for western Surrey, Hampshire, Dorset and the Isle of Wight, and also served Greater London, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Somerset and Devon.

Most SWR services ran on electrified lines using the 750VDC third rail system. There was a diesel fleet for services on the West of England line to Salisbury and Exeter, using the unelectrified track beyond Worting Junction just west of Basingstoke, and for Salisbury to Southampton via Romsey services which also serve Eastleigh.

From , SWR's London terminus, long-distance trains ran to southern England, including the major coastal population centres of Portsmouth, Southampton, Bournemouth, Poole and Weymouth. There were also trains to Reading and Exeter, but these were not the principal fast services from London to those cities, which are operated from by Great Western Railway. The majority of its passengers were on suburban commuter lines in inner and south-west London, Surrey, east Berkshire, and north-east Hampshire.

As with most rail companies, non-folding bicycles were banned from peak-time trains to and from London. However, these restrictions applied only to cyclists boarding or alighting in the area bounded by Hook, Alton, Guildford, Reading and Dorking, in order to maximise available passenger space on the most crowded trains.

Mainline services SWR operated regular services on four mainline routes: The South West Main Line (SWML) runs between London (Waterloo station) and the town of Weymouth; the route passes through several large towns and cities, including Woking, Basingstoke, Winchester, Southampton, Bournemouth, Poole and Dorchester. South Western Railway operates trains along the entire length of the line. Almost all trains operated by the company start from or terminate at London Waterloo with the exception of a Winchester - Bournemouth / Poole stopping service; these include semi-fast services to/from Southampton and Poole, and express services to/from Weymouth. There are also trains to and from Portsmouth; these trains branch off the SWML at Eastleigh, then proceed via the Eastleigh to Fareham and West Coastway lines to Portsmouth Harbour station. The Portsmouth Direct line (PDL) branches off the SWML at Woking and runs to Portsmouth via Guildford, Haslemere, Petersfield and Havant. South Western Railway operates all passenger trains on this route; these include fast and semi-fast services between London and Portsmouth, and semi-fast services as far as Haslemere. The West of England line (WEL) is the only mainline route that is not fully electrified. It leaves the SWML at Basingstoke and runs to Exeter via Andover, Salisbury, Gillingham and Yeovil. South Western Railway is the only operator on the line, with most services running between London and either Salisbury or Exeter St Davids. Some peak-time services terminate at various other destinations on the line, including Gillingham and Yeovil Pen Mill. The Alton line leaves the SWML at (just after Woking) and runs to Alton via Aldershot and Farnham. It is the shortest of the four mainline routes and as such it is sometimes considered an outer suburban route instead (however for ticketing purposes, it is classed as a mainline route). Services usually run the full length of the line between London and Alton, though some services terminate at Farnham.

In total, there were 14 mainline trains per hour departing London Waterloo in the off-peak; this number increased in the peak hours. The majority of mainline services were operated by or EMUs, except for the West of England Main Line which were always operated by or DMUs (because it is unelectrified) and the Alton Line which also saw the occasional use of units.

Metro and Suburban services South Western Railway also operated many suburban "Metro" services in and around London. These all ran between London Waterloo and , where they split into two separate routes: via Putney and via Wimbledon. All services on the suburban part of the network were operated by , , and electric multiple units.

Via Putney The main route via Putney is known as the Waterloo to Reading Line. It runs between London and Reading and passes through towns such as Staines-upon-Thames, Ascot and Bracknell. It operates as a fast service as far as , with Reading trains only calling at , , and . Branch lines on this route include: The Hounslow Loop Line, which leaves the main line at , runs via and rejoins the line between and (with junctions in both directions). Most services on the branch run either between London and Weybridge (described below), or run in a loop from Waterloo to Waterloo via Brentford, Whitton and Richmond (these services run both clockwise and anticlockwise). The Kingston Loop Line, which branches off at Twickenham, runs via Kingston and joins the South West Main Line at New Malden. Most services on this line run in an anticlockwise loop, from Waterloo to Waterloo, via Putney, Strawberry Hill, Kingston and Wimbledon. There is also a branch line to Shepperton, however, this is only served by Putney trains at peak times.