Government consultation on the devolution of rail franchising response

The London Assembly believes the devolution of suburban rail franchises is a once in a generation opportunity for improvements to services.

In its response to the Government’s consultation on rail decentralisation our Transport Committee backs Transport for London’s (TfL) proposal to take control of Southeastern and West Anglia’s inner suburban routes.

The Committee cites TfL’s success in transforming the former Silverlink franchise into the London Overground, which has seen passenger numbers triple and customer satisfaction and reliability increase.

Committee Members believe giving the Mayor and TfL the power to expand the successful Overground model to other suburban rail routes would result in better services, more effective contract management and less bureaucracy and confusion around fare structures.

The Committee has previously advocated for greater control for the Mayor and Transport for London (TfL) over rail franchising in its response to the Government’s first consultation on changes to franchise arrangements in October 2010.

Read our Transport Committee’s response to ‘Rail Decentralisation: Devolving decision-making on passenger rail services in England’ (June 2012):