Regional Rail Services
The
UK has an extensive rail network which is operated by dozens of
Train Operators, many in competition with each other. The complexity
of this network and choices available have become very apparent
during my research for this Transport section of the Relocation
Bureau's website.
To
cover each Train Operator and route network in detail would create
information overload, therefore we have provided a quick guide to
the services available in each of the UK regions with web links
to each of the Train Operators.
Information on the Rail Companies/Train Operators that serve the
UK Regions can be found on
www.rail.co.uk/ukrail/railcomp/towelcm.htm.
www.rail.co.uk
also provides access to Railtrack's Travel
Planner system to help you find the available routes and train
operators to use, and also a useful Travel
Bureau.
Regions
and Train Operators
UK
Region
|
Train
Operator |
Nationally
|
Virgin
Trains - wide UK Network
|
London
and Suburbs
|
Refer
to 'In
and Around London'
|
| South
and South East of England |
South
and South East of London
Southern
Railway - covers rail services in the South London Metro
area, London to Brighton and south coast services between
Bournemouth, Brighton, Hastings and Ashford.
Connex
- train services in south-east London, Kent, Sussex and parts
of Surrey, and many bus routes in London and the south-east.
South
West Trains - services in Southern England towards South
West England
|
|
West
and North West of London
Chiltern
Railways - serves the Chilterns area of Buckinghamshire,
Oxfordshire and Warwickshire from London through to Birmingham.
First
Great Western Link provides frequent services on the important
rail artery along the Thames Valley, combining the busy commuter
routes between Oxford, Newbury, Reading and London Paddington.
|
|
East
and North East of London
West
Anglia Great Northern Railway - provides services to Hertfordshire
and Essex through to parts of East Anglia.
One
- serves Essex and East London.
|
| South
West England and Wales |
Wessex
Trains - serves the West Country and South West England
First
Great Western - provides services between South and West
Wales and Birmingham, London Waterloo and the West Country.
Arriva
Trains Wales has an extensive urban network in south and
central Wales. The majority of journeys made on the Valley
Lines network are to/from Cardiff.
|
| East
Anglia (Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire)
|
One
is the principal train operator in East Anglia, offering fast,
frequent and comfortable journeys between Norwich, Ipswich,
Colchester and London as well as local services connecting many
of the region's smaller towns and villages.
One
- also serves Essex and East London.
|
| The
Midlands (Central England) |
Central
Trains - an extensive service in Central England and Mid
Wales with connections to London.
|
| Northern
England |
First
North Western - extensive network throughout North West
England (Lancashire, Manchester, West Yorkshire, Lake District)
and North Wales.
TransPennine
Express - services throughout Yorkshire, Lancashire, Humberside,
Northumberland and Durham
Merseyrail
- serving the Liverpool suburban area - the Wirral line, extending
under the river Mersey, links Liverpool with West Kirby, Ellesmere
Port, New Brighton and Chester. The Northern Line links Liverpool
with Ormskirk, Kirby, Southport and Hunts Cross.
|
| Scotland |
First
ScotRail - operates 2000 daily services on its main
suburban routes around Glasgow and Edinburgh, inter-urban routes
linking Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Inverness and on its
rural routes covering the North and West Highlands as well as
the South West of Scotland.
|
3.7.2
V1.0
|