London Rail

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London Rail is an arm of Transport for London (TfL), involved in the provision of passenger service on the National Rail "heavy" rail network within London, England.

Despite its name, London Rail is not responsible for those "light" rail systems which are directly controlled by TfL (London Underground, Docklands Light Railway and Tramlink), which do not form part of the National Rail network.

Mayor Ken Livingstone hopes in the future to gain control of all rail services in London and make them part of the London Overground.

1 Influence
2 Direct management
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] Influence

Currently TfL has no direct management responsibility for services on the National Rail network within London, even though these carry large numbers of commuters into London and also provide many internal services, especially within south London. Under the Greater London Authority Act 1999 Transport for London was given powers to consult with the train operators and as such London Rail is therefore more of an enabler than an operator, and has developed partnerships with the Department for Transport (who are responsible for rail strategy), Network Rail (who own the infrastructure) and the various train operating companies (who manage the services) in order to further its aims.

[edit] Direct management

Logo for London Overground services under the direct management of TfL London Rail

London Rail is responsible for the extension to the East London Line and is a source of funding for improvements to rail service frequencies and station facilities in the London area. From November 2007 the London Overground (the Metro services of the Silverlink franchise) will be directly controlled by London Rail. The extended East London Line will form part of that brand from 2010.