Connex South Central

Connex South Central

Franchise(s):	South Central 1996 – 2001
Main region(s):	South
Other region(s):	London, South East
Fleet size:	?
Stations called at:	?
Parent company:	Connex

Connex South Central was a short-lived train operating company in the United Kingdom. It was owned by the Connex Group, and operated under the Connex brand between October 1996 until mid-2001.

Passenger trains served Surrey, Sussex and parts of Hampshire and Kent. The network was previously part of the Southern Region of British Railways and later Network SouthEast. Before privatisation, the part of Network SouthEast which was to become Connex South Central was known as Network SouthCentral. Services used the London termini of Victoria and London Bridge.

The Connex South Central rolling stock was a mixture of 30 year old Southern region 'Slam Door' EMU stock, BREL Electric Multiple units of classes 455, 456 and 319. Class 205 and 207 'Thumper' DeMUs operated the non electrified Uckfield and Marshlink routes.

In 1997 a new service from Gatwick Airport to Rugby began, via the West Coast Main Line, using class 319 dual-voltage rolling stock. It was later curtailed to Watford Junction in the early 2000s, but extended southwards to Brighton.

The franchise was originally due to run until 2006, but Connex South Central lost the franchise in October 2000.^[1] It was later awarded to Govia, who rebranded the line as South Central then as Southern in 2004.

See also

• The Navigators, a film by Ken Loach about railway privatisation

Topical imagery

• 

  A picture of a Connex South Central EMU train at Redhill station in the year 2000.

• 

  A former Connex South Central train at Haywards Heath station in 2002.

• 

  A former Connex South Central train passes trough Haywards Heath in 2001.

• 

  A Connex South Central British Rail Class 319 EMU rips through Bletchley station in 2000. It is operating a service from Gatwick Airport to Rugby, which usually called at: Redhill, East Croydon, Kensington Olympia, Watford Junction and Milton Keynes Central en-route.

References

1. ^ "Connex loses rail franchise", BBC News Online, London, 24 October 2000.

Preceded by Network SouthCentral As part of British Rail

Operator of South Central franchise 1996 - 2001

Succeeded by Southern