 | |
| Company type | Limited company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transport |
| Founded | 14 November 1996; 29 years ago (1996-11-14) |
| Headquarters | Newcastle upon Tyne |
Area served | United Kingdom |
| Products | Train services |
| Owner | Go-Ahead Group (65%) Keolis (35%) |
| Website | govia |
Govia Limited[1] is a transport company based in the United Kingdom. It was formed in November 1996 as a joint venture betweenGo-Ahead Group (65%) andKeolis (35%) to bid for rail franchises during theprivatisation of British Rail.
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Established in 1986, theGo-Ahead Group has its roots inNorth East England where it was formed asGo-Ahead Northern during thede-regulation of the bus industry.Keolis is the biggest private operator of public transport in France and a major worldwide operator of transport services.
As part of theprivatisation of British Rail, theThames Trains franchise was awarded to Victory Rail Holdings,[2] a company owned by Go-Ahead (65%) and some exBritish Rail managers (35%), with operations commencing on 13 October 1996.[3] Go-Ahead bought the remaining shares it did not own in June 1998.[4]
Go-Ahead formed ajoint venture withKeolis and were awarded theThameslink franchise with operations commencing on 2 March 1997. Upon being retendered, the franchise passed toFirst Capital Connect on 1 April 2006. Govia also unsuccessfully bid for theRegional Railways North West andScotRail franchises.
In August 2001, Govia commenced operating the South Central franchise adopting the nameSouthern.[5][6] In April 2006,Southeastern operated theSouth Eastern franchise. In November 2007, Govia commenced operating theLondon Midland franchise and in May 2014, theGovia Thameslink Railway franchise.[7][8] Govia unsuccessfully bid for theNorthern andTransPennine Express franchises in 2015.[9]
Govia currently operate one franchise:[10]
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Govia previously ran rail franchises through the following companies:
The partners have also bid for other franchises separately. Keolis held a 45% shareholding in former train operating companyFirst TransPennine Express since February 2004. In 2012, it bid for theInterCity West Coast franchise in partnership withSNCF. Go-Ahead bid for theGreater Anglia franchise.[18]
The partners also lodged an unsuccessful bid for theTransPennine Express franchise in 2015, but this was not being done through Govia, with Keolis holding a majority shareholding.[9]