West Midlands Trains (2026)
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Main regions | Greater London North West England South East England West Midlands |
| Parent company | DfT Operator |
| Reporting mark | LM |
| Predecessor | West Midlands Trains |
| Other | |
| Website | www.westmidlandsrailway.co.uk www.londonnorthwesternrailway.co.uk |
West Midlands Trains[1] is a future British train operating company that will take over the services of the operator of the same name from Transport UK Group and Mitsui & Co on 1 February 2026.
In the lead-up to the 2024 United Kingdom general election, the Labour Party of Keir Starmer committed itself to bring the passenger operations of the British rail network back under state ownership.[2][3] Following its election win, the government introduced the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024 that received the royal assent in November 2024.[4][5]
In July 2025, it was announced that DfT Operator would take over passenger services from Transport UK Group and Mitsui & Co on 1 February 2026.[6][7][8]
References
- ^ "WM TRAINS LIMITED overview". GOV.UK. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
- ^ Elgot, Jessica; Topham, Gwyn (24 April 2024). "Labour promises rail nationalisation within five years of coming to power". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
- ^ "Labour pledges to renationalise most rail services within five years". 24 April 2024. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
- ^ "Rail nationalisation takes a step closer with Starmer's first major public reform". The Independent. 3 September 2024. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
- ^ "Government reveals first three operators to be renationalised after law change | Railnews | Today's news for Tomorrow's railway". RAILNEWS. Archived from the original on 7 December 2024. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
- ^ "West Midlands Trains nationalisation date confirmed". Railway Gazette International. Archived from the original on 30 July 2025. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
- ^ West Midlands Trains to enter public ownership Modern Railways issue 924 September 2025 page 9
- ^ Simmons, Mark (29 September 2025). "British passenger renationalisation progresses". International Railway Journal. Retrieved 30 October 2025.