Government should give Southeastern franchise to TfL, says London mayor

London mayor Sadiq Kahn has urged the DfT to transfer Southeastern rail services to TfL. In a letter to transport secretary Chris Grayling, Khan calls on him to put the needs of thousands of passengers ahead of political expediency.

The DfT has shortlisted four bidders for the next Southeastern rail franchise, which is due to start in December 2018. They are: 

• South Eastern Holdings Ltd, a joint venture company that on franchise award will be wholly owned by Abellio Transport Group Ltd and East Japan Railway Company and Mitsui & Co Ltd
• London and South East Passenger Rail Services Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Govia Ltd (Go-Ahead 65%, Keolis 35%)
• Stagecoach South Eastern Trains Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Stagecoach Group plc
• Trenitalia UK Ltd, wholly owned by Trenitalia SpA.

The current operator of the franchise is Govia. DfT has delayed announcing who will be awarded franchise by three months to November. 

Khan said: “These passengers deserve so much better than they are currently getting and I believe now is the time for a fresh start. The government could make the most of this delay by working with me to put passengers first by transferring responsibility for contracting these Metro services to TfL. Their expertise would provide the more frequent and reliable services these passengers are crying out for.”

The mayor describes recent performance on Southeastern services as “mediocre at best”.

He pointed out that TfL has improved reliability across its network in recent years and has proposed improvements for the suburban Southeastern metro services operating within the capital that include: Improved station staffing to provide better assistance and a more secure travel environment for all passengers, including the guarantee of a turn-up-and-go service; Integration into TfL's fares and ticketing structures, including the fares freeze on TfL services, ending the situation where customers pay a different fare depending on which operator's service they travel on; and more services to increase train frequencies at times of day when there is spare track capacity (for example in the evenings and on Sundays).