 | |||
 A pair of Southern Class 377s at London Victoria Platforms 18 and 19 awaiting departure to Eastbourne and Reigate | |||
| Overview | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Franchises |
| ||
| Main Regions | Greater London,South East England | ||
| Other Region | East of England | ||
| Fleet | |||
| Stations called at | 213 | ||
| Stations operated | 156 | ||
| Parent company | Govia Thameslink Railway | ||
| Reporting mark | SN | ||
| Technical | |||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)standard gauge | ||
| Electrification | 750 V DC third rail 25 kV 50 Hz ACOHLE | ||
| Length | 666.3 km (414.0 mi)[citation needed] | ||
| Other | |||
| Website | www | ||
| |||
Southern is the brand name used by theGovia Thameslink Railway (GTR)train operating company on the Southern routes of theThameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise in England.[2] It is a subsidiary ofGovia, a joint venture between transport groupsGo-Ahead andKeolis, and has operated theSouth Central franchise since August 2001 and theGatwick Express service since June 2008. When thepassenger rail franchise was subsumed into GTR, Southern was split from Gatwick Express and the two became separate brands, alongside theThameslink andGreat Northern brands.
Southern operates the majority of commuter services from its Central London terminals atLondon Bridge andLondon Victoria to South London,East andWest Sussex, as well as regional services in parts ofHampshire,Kent andSurrey. It also provides services betweenWatford Junction andCroydon via theWest London line.
For three consecutive years from 2016 to 2018, Southern came last on passenger satisfaction in surveys conducted by the consumer groupWhich?, scoring low for value for money, reliability, and punctuality in 2018.[3] In 2022, Southern was ranked second-worst on overall passenger satisfaction in a survey conducted byTransport Focus.[4]
Passenger services on the Southern route, along with all others currently operated byGovia Thameslink Railway, are due to transfer to thepublicly-owned operatorThameslink Southern Great Northern on 31 May 2026.[5]
As part of the widerprivatisation of the state owned railway operatorBritish Rail in the 1990s,Connex South Central was awarded theNetwork SouthCentral franchise by theDirector of Passenger Rail Franchising. Operations commenced on 26 May 1996.
In March 2000, the ShadowStrategic Rail Authority (SSRA) announced its intention to relet the franchise from May 2003; bothConnex andGovia were shortlisted.[6][7] In October 2000, the SSRA announced that Govia had been awarded the franchise and would operate it from May 2003.[8] Govia negotiated a deal with Connex to buy out the remainder of its franchise, this was completed in August 2001.[9][10][11] Govia trading as SouthCentral[12] took over operations on 26 August 2001. The franchise was originally to run for twenty years but, in 2002, the Strategic Rail Authority changed the way it handled financing agreements and therefore Govia was re-awarded with a seven-and-a-half-year franchise until December 2009.[8][13][14]
In May 2003, the franchise was rebranded as Southern in a recall of the pre-nationalisationSouthern Railway, using a green roundel logo withSouthern in yellow in a green bar.
During April 2007, theDepartment for Transport (DfT) announced that theGatwick Express franchise was to be incorporated into the main South Central franchise.[15][16] This reorganisation was part of a wider plan to increase capacity on theBrighton Main Line, involving the extension of peak-hour services from Gatwick toBrighton andEastbourne from December 2008. This change doubled the number of London to Brighton express trains during those periods.[17]
In December 2008, Southern took over the services on theRedhill to Tonbridge Line fromSoutheastern.[18]
The South Central franchise end date was brought forward to September 2009 upon the integration of the Gatwick Express service, to allow the new operator to be in place during major changes to the timetable in and around South London in December 2009.[19] In the run-up to the bidding process for the franchise, reports emerged suggesting thatTransport for London, the operator of theLondon Overground service, wished to take control of all overground services in South London, including the 'Metro' area of the South Central franchise.[20][21] However, such a transfer never took place and the DfT put out the entire franchise for tender.
In August 2008, the DfT shortlisted Govia,National Express,NedRail andStagecoach for the new South Central franchise.[22][23][24] In June 2009, the DfT announced that Govia had retained the franchise, to start on 20 September 2009.[25][26]
In March 2012, the Department for Transport announced thatAbellio,FirstGroup,Govia,MTR andStagecoach had been shortlisted for the new Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise.[27][28] The Invitation to Tender was to be issued in October 2012, with the successful bidder announced in spring 2013. However, in the wake of the collapse of theInterCity West Coast refranchising process, the government announced in October 2012 that the process would be put on hold pending the results of a review.[29]
In December 2012, Southern'sLondon Victoria toLondon Bridge viaDenmark Hill service ceased, being partially replaced byLondon Overground's newClapham Junction toDalston Junction service.
At the conclusion of the Southern franchise in July 2015, the South Central franchise was merged into theGovia Thameslink Railway franchise, which is run as amanagement contract rather than a traditional franchise.[30][31] However, the Southern brand was retained.[32]
Southern was criticised for major changes to its timetables in December 2007 and December 2008.
In December 2007, Southern changed the arrangement for the splitting of services to and from London Victoria on theArun Valley Line, opting to split trains atHorsham rather thanBarnham, as well as run the portion to Portsmouth or Southampton non-stop to Barnham. Some passengers criticised this change as it increased the journey time to and from London by up to 10 minutes from certain stations, while in the event of services running behind schedule, trains were sometimes not split at Horsham, and proceeded non-stop to Barnham, leaving Arun Valley commuters at Horsham with the prospect of no onward trains.[33]
During December 2008, further timetable changes included the introduction of the extended Gatwick Express services. However, reliability and timekeeping on some of the new services were considered poor, leading to several public meetings being held.[34][35][36] On 22 January 2009, Southern responded to some of these criticisms. During 2009, these services have recorded improved timekeeping and criticisms have since subsided.[37]
The new timetable also led to unhappiness due to the difference in speed and frequency of service between East Coastway services and those on the Brighton Main Line.[38][39]
Further changes to the timetable were made in December 2010; the first timetable change to include many of the requirements of the new franchise. Additional services were included at evenings and weekends. In the London area a 'metro' frequency of service was introduced on most routes with the extension of the weekday daytime four-trains-per-hour norm to late evenings (up to around midnight), Saturdays and Sundays. In addition, new late-night services were introduced from London on Friday and Saturday nights with last trains leaving central London at around 00:30.[40]
Outside London, a new later-evening service was introduced to Uckfield from London Bridge, new late-night services from Brighton along the West Coastway line and direct services between Southampton and Brighton on Sundays.[40]
In January 2015, Southern hit controversy when it was revealed that the 7.29am Brighton to London Victoria train failed to get in on time on any occasion out of all 240 attempts in 2014.[41] Later in May 2015 it was revealed that Southern had fined passengers for standing in first class on an overcrowded train.[42] Only 20% of Southern trains arrived on time in the year from April 2015 to March 2016, and there was an ongoing industrial dispute over driver-only operated trains.[43][44] In late 2016, theTransport Select Committee told ministers to "get a grip" on railway franchises, with their report asking if the train operator was in breach of their contractual obligations due to the large number of cancelled trains, and went on to say, "in normal circumstances, this would be grounds for termination of the contract".[45][46]
In 2016, the company introduced an "amended timetable [that] would be a temporary measure until staffing returned to normal" to be announced on 5 July. TheNational Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT)trade union said that 350 services would be cancelled every day (the company ran 2,242 weekday services in the previous timetable). The company said it had insufficient personnel, and too many were takingsick leave; the union denied that high levels of sickness were the cause of cancellations, while agreeing that there were an insufficient number of guards and drivers.[47]
The governmentDepartment for Transport said that the situation was unacceptable. While the company was obliged to notify the department in advance, this did not amount to giving the company permission for the changes. The RMT union general secretaryMick Cash said the government had permitted GTR to introduce the emergency timetable, but that it was "nothing to do with staff sickness and everything to do with gross mismanagement of this franchise and the failure to employ enough guards and drivers. ... a cynical and cowardly ploy".[47]
TheLondon Evening Standard mentioned Southern in an article in June 2016 "Southern rail suggests commuter goes on 100 mile detour to Clapham instead of her normal six minute journey".[48] In June 2016, amongst criticism of the performance of its services, Go-Ahead warned of lower than anticipated profits on itsGovia Thameslink Railway franchises, leading to an 18% drop in the Go-Ahead share price.[49]
From 31 October 2016, Southern restored the full weekday timetable.[50]
In 2016, Southern altered its method of door operation, with control of the doors moving from the conductor to the driver. Southern said this would allow the conductor to concentrate on the passengers, but theRMT andAssociated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (ASLEF) unions said that it was an attempt to make conductors unnecessary and would be unsafe. The rail safety regulator, the Rail Standards and Safety Board has said that "We have 30 years of data which we have analysed. We have found that the driver performing the task does not increase the risk to passengers at all."[51] During 2016, the RMT and ASLEF unions went on strike over the changes, causing severe disruption to Southern services.[52] The strikes continued into 2017.[53]
The BBC suggested that the RMT union are particularly worried about the new method of operation because if drivers (rather than conductors) control the doors then trains could run without conductors and thus any strike by conductors would not have the power to cancel trains.[54]
In December 2016, it was announced that the government would pay £50 million to Southern to cover the costs of the disruption caused by the strikes, due to a deal between the government and Southern. This deal means that the government pays £38 million for lost revenue and £15 million in compensation to passengers. This deal also means that Govia Thameslink Railway will save around £1.1 million in pay for striking workers.[55] Commentators argued that the government gave a management contract rather than a normal franchise to GTR in order to push through DOO. The management contract meant that GTR did not have the incentive to resolve strikes as a normal franchisee would have, as the government lost money from strikes rather than GTR.[56][57]
On 2 February 2017, the TUC announced that talks between Southern and ASLEF had reached an agreement meaning that the dispute with ASLEF had been resolved. However, the RMT union said it was 'betrayed' by Southern and that strikes by the RMT would continue.[58] On 29 June 2017, ASLEF implemented an overtime ban with the aim of highlighting a claimed failure by Southern to recruit adequate staff.
The standard off-peak service as of May 2025 is:[59]
| Brighton Main Line | ||
|---|---|---|
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| London Victoria –Littlehampton | 2 | |
| London Victoria –Eastbourne | 1 |
|
| London Victoria –Ore | 1 |
|
| Arun Valley line | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| London Victoria –Portsmouth Harbour via Crawley | 2 |
|
| London Victoria –Bognor Regis via Crawley | 2 |
|
| Seaford branch line | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| Brighton –Seaford | 2 |
|
| East Coastway andMarshlink lines | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| Brighton –Eastbourne | 1 | |
| Brighton –Ore | 1 |
|
| Eastbourne –Ashford International | 1 |
|
| West Coastway line | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| Brighton –Southampton Central | 2 | |
| Brighton –Portsmouth & Southsea | 1 |
|
| Brighton to Chichester via Littlehampton | 1 |
|
| Barnham – Bognor Regis | 2 | Shuttle service |
| Oxted line | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| London Victoria –East Grinstead | 1 | |
| London Bridge –Uckfield | 1 |
|
| Reigate andRedhill–Tonbridge line | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| London Victoria –Reigate | 2 | |
| Redhill –Tonbridge | 1 | |
| West London Route | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| Watford Junction –East Croydon | 1 |
|
| Mole Valley Line | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| London Victoria –Dorking via Carshalton | 1 | |
| London Victoria –Horsham via Carshalton | 1 |
|
| London Victoria –Epsom Downs via Norbury | 2 |
|
| London Bridge – Epsom | 2 |
|
| Caterham andTattenham Corner lines | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| London Bridge –Caterham | 2 |
|
| London Bridge –Tattenham Corner | 2 |
|
| London via Crystal Palace and/or Tulse Hill | ||
| Route | tph | Calling at |
| London Victoria –West Croydon via Crystal Palace | 2 |
|
| London Victoria –London Bridge via Crystal Palace | 2 |
|
| London Bridge –East Croydon via Tulse Hill | 2 | |
| London Bridge –Beckenham Junction via Tulse Hill and Crystal Palace | 2 |
|
As of May 2022[update], Southern services are almost entirely operated by 214Class 377 electric multiple units, with the exception of services on the unelectrifiedMarshlink line and theUckfield branch of theOxted line, which useClass 171 diesel multiple units.
South Central inherited a fleet ofClass 205,Class 207,Class 319,Class 421,Class 423,Class 455 andClass 456 multiple-unit trains fromConnex South Central. Southern inherited aClass 73 locomotive andClass 460Juniper trains fromGatwick Express.[citation needed]
A franchise commitment was to replace all the Mark 1 slam-door stock, resulting in Southern ordering 28 three-car DC, 139 four-car DC and 15 four-car dual-voltageClass 377Electrostars in September 2001 and March 2002 to replace the Class 421, Class 422 and Class 423s.[60]
In August 2002, Southern ordered nine two-car and six four-carClass 171Turbostars to replace the Class 205s and Class 207s on the routes that are not fully electrified.[61] A tenth two-car Class 171 was transferred fromSouth West Trains, entering traffic in July 2007.[62][63]
In 2007, Southern ordered 12 four-car, dual-voltageClass 377/5Electrostars to replace the remaining twelveClass 319s for transfer toFirst Capital Connect. In March 2008Go Ahead purchased a further 11 Class 377/5s. All 23 ended up being sublet to First Capital Connect to provide extra stock for theThameslink Programme Key Output Zero changes from March 2009. However, due to delays in their production, Class 377/2s were also sublet. To cover for this, Class 350/1s were subleased fromLondon Midland.[64]
To provide stock for the extendedGatwick Express services to Brighton, in 2008 Southern leased 17Class 442Wessex Electrics withdrawn by South West Trains in early 2007. After retaining the franchise in 2009, Southern leased the remaining seven Class 442s. The last of the Class 460Junipers were withdrawn in September 2012.[65]
To release Class 377/3s for use on London suburban services, Southern introduced a fleet of ex-London OvergroundClass 313s on the Coastway lines from May 2010.[66][67][68] The Class 313s remained in service until May 2023, when they were withdrawn and replaced by Class 377s.[69]
During 2011, Southern announced that, because of delays in procuring new trains for theThameslink Programme, the 23Class 377/5s on sub-lease toFirst Capital Connect would not be returned in time to deliver the operator's planned capacity increases from the December 2013 timetable change. It therefore began a process to procure 130 new vehicles.[70] It was announced in December 2011 thatBombardier had been contracted to supply 26 five-car Class 377/6s.[71] In November 2012, it was announced that an option for a further 40 vehicles was being exercised.[72]
All twenty-fourClass 456s were transferred toSouth West Trains in 2014 after the introduction of the Class 377/6 fleet.[citation needed]
In April 2016, Southern commenced a lease for nine three-carriageClass 170s last used byFirst ScotRail fromEversholt Rail Group. Four (170421–424) moved toWolverton Works in 2015 and were reconfigured as two two-carriage and two four-carriage Class 171s. The other five (170416–420) remained in Scotland on sub-lease toAbellio ScotRail and were scheduled to move to Southern in 2018.[73][74][75]
In May 2022, Southern withdrew its Class 455s and received 2 Class 377s from Southeastern.[76][77]
On 7 September 2022, threeClass 171s, having been reformed to three-car formations and renumbered to 170422–424, transferred toEast Midlands Railway.[78]
Between December 2024 and December 2025, Southern is set to transfer 13 Class 377/1s (377121–133) toSoutheastern to replace ageingClass 465 units. This will be made possible by the movement of 30 ex-Greater AngliaClass 379 sets toGreat Northern route services from London Kings Cross, which will in turn allowClass 387/1 dual-voltage units currently in service with Great Northern to be released to work on Southern routes.[79]
| Family | Class | Image | Type | Top speed | Number | Carriages | Routes operated | Built | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mph | km/h | ||||||||
| Bombardier Turbostar | 171 |   | DMU | 100 | 160 | 13[80][81] | 3 | Brighton Main Line (London Bridge to South Croydon) Oxted line (to Uckfield only) East Coastway line Marshlink line | 2003–04 |
| 4[81] | 2 | ||||||||
  | |||||||||
| Bombardier Electrostar | 377/1 |   .jpg) | EMU | 55 | 4 | Entire Southern network apart from sections betweenHurst Green andUckfield & betweenOre andAshford International | 2001–14 | ||
| 377/2 | 15 | ||||||||
| 377/3 | 28 | 3 | |||||||
| 377/4 | 75 | 4 | |||||||
| 377/6 | 26 | 5 | |||||||
| 377/7 | 8 | ||||||||
   | |||||||||
| 387/2 |  | 110 | 177 | 15 | 4[82] | Brighton Main Line East Coastway line West Coastway line (Brighton to Southampton Central) | 2016–17 | ||
 | |||||||||
Former units operated by Southern include:
| Family | Class | Image | Type | mph | km/h | Number | Carriages | Built | Withdrawn | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turbostar | 171 | | DMU | 100 | 160 | 3 | 3 | 2003-04 | 2022 | Transferred toEast Midlands Railway |
| Thumper | 205 (3H) |  | 75 | 120 | 34 | 2/3 | 1957–62 | 2004 | Replaced byClass 171Turbostar | |
| 207 (3D) |  | 19 | 3 | 1962 | ||||||
| BREL 1972 | 313 | .jpg) | EMU | 19 | 1976–77 | 2023[83] | Replaced byClass 377Electrostar | |||
  | ||||||||||
| BR Second Generation (Mark 3) | 319 |  | 100 | 161 | 20 | 4 | 1987 | 2008 | Replaced byClass 377Electrostar | |
 | ||||||||||
| SiemensDesiro | 350/1 |  | Several | 2004–05 | 2009 | Subleased fromLondon Midland in 2008 to provide cover forClass 377Electrostar units subleased to First Capital Connect. After newerClass 377Electrostar trains were built, these units were returned to London Midland. Replaced by newer Class 377Electrostar units.[64] | ||||
 | ||||||||||
| BombardierElectrostar | 377 |  | 9 | 2002-03 | 2024-25 | Replaced by Class 387Electrostar | ||||
| ||||||||||
| 421 (4CIG) |  | 90 | 145 | 1964–66 | 2005 | Replaced byClass 377Electrostar | ||||
| 423 (4VEP) |  | 50 | 1967–71 | |||||||
| BR Second Generation (Mark 3) | 455 |  | 75 | 120 | 46 | 1982–84 | 2022 | Replaced byClass 377Electrostar | ||
 | ||||||||||
| 456 |  | 24 | 2 | 1990–91 | 2014 | Replaced byClass 377Electrostar | ||||
 |
Southern's fleet is maintained atBrighton Lovers Walk andSelhurst depots. The Gatwick Express fleet is maintained atStewarts Lane.
Light maintenance is also carried out atLittlehampton for the electric fleet, andSt Leonards for the class 171 fleet when onMarshlink services.
Southern, as part of its successful bid for the South Central franchise in 2009, made several commitments to improving services across the network.[26] These included:
The franchise consultation paper released at the beginning of the 2009 franchising process stated that the ultimate franchise agreement would include a change mechanism to enable the DfT to incorporate additional routes into the South Central franchise, and it invited bidders to submit priced options for schemes put forward by stakeholders. One such scheme could, as indicated in the South Central Franchise Consultation Paper, be the reopening of theUckfield – Lewes line, closed in 1969.[84] During the 2010s, several interested parties have been examining the possibility of reopening the line.[85][86]
In January 2016,Transport for London announced a proposal to take over the London suburban parts of the franchise in 2021 through a partnership with the Department for Transport to form a new suburban metro service.[87] However, the plan was rejected by Transport SecretaryChris Grayling in December 2016.[88]
In January 2017, it was reported that the Department for Transport was considering temporarily renationalising the franchise if the service did not improve.[89]
On 17 June 2021, the DfT extended the current contract from 19 September 2021 to 31 March 2022.[90]
The contract for the delivery of Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern services was extended by the DfT on 25 March 2022. The current contract will now expire on 1 April 2028.[1]
Southern was criticised in January 2007 for not wishing to introduceOyster Pay As You Go on its London routes, stating that it was not financially viable. In 2007, Southern introducedOyster on its Watford Junction to Clapham Junction route,[91] and the company later agreed in principle to the introduction of Oyster across its network,[92] but did not give any firm timescale, managing director Chris Burchell saying
"There are still a number of outstanding issues that need to be discussed with TfL, but we do not believe these will prevent us making PAYG a reality on our network. We look forward to discussions with TfL on how we can make this happen as soon as possible for our passengers."[93]
In its successful franchise bid in 2009, Southern said it was committed to rolling out Oyster Pay As You Go in the London area, but also that such a move was subject to industry agreement.[26] Since January 2010, Oyster Pay As You Go has been valid on all its London routes, along with most other train services in the London area. In addition, Oyster is valid on Southern services beyond the Greater London boundary as far as Epsom, Epsom Downs, Tattenham Corner, Upper Warlingham, Caterham and Gatwick Airport.[citation needed] Two years later, some customers were still discontent about inconsistent Pay As You Go fares across the network, compared to operating companies likec2c where it was fully integrated.[94]
In 2012, Southern became the first rail company in England to use theITSO card on its network.The Key is a smartcard similar to the Oyster Card, allowing tickets across the network to be purchased electronically.[95]
Southern sell a DaySave ticket, which allows unlimited off-peak travel on any train in the company's network for one day. The ticket can only be purchased in advance online, or at a selected number of stations.[96][97]
Media related toSouthern (train operating company) at Wikimedia Commons| Preceded by Connex South Central South Central franchise | Operator of South Central franchise 2001–2009 | Succeeded by Southern South Central (incl Gatwick Express) franchise |
| Preceded by Gatwick Express Gatwick Express franchise | Operator of Gatwick Express franchise 2008–2009 | |
| Preceded by Southern South Central franchise | Operator of South Central (incl Gatwick Express) franchise 2009–2015 | Succeeded by Govia Thameslink Railway Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise |
| Preceded by Southern Gatwick Express franchise | ||
| Preceded by Southern South Central (incl Gatwick Express) franchise | Sub-brand of Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise 2015–present | Succeeded by Incumbent |
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