Government Unveils Branding for Great British Railways to Renationalise Rail Network
The UK Government has revealed the branding for Great British Railways (GBR) as part of plans to renationalise the railways. Over the past year, the government has nationalised three passenger rail franchises, with Labour having promised similar renationalisation in its manifesto.
GBR's new livery features red, white, and blue to echo the Union Flag and will be displayed on trains, stations, the GBR website, and the new app. The rollout of this branding will be gradual, with trains showing the new livery expected to be visible from next spring. In December, branding displays will be installed at major stations including London Bridge, Birmingham New Street, Glasgow Central, Leeds City, and Manchester Piccadilly.
The Railways Bill is currently progressing through the House of Commons to enable the establishment of GBR, which aims to place railway ownership under public ownership rather than private shareholders. GBR will consolidate the running of passenger trains and rail infrastructure under one umbrella, merging 17 organisations to reduce bureaucracy and improve accountability.
The GBR app will provide customers with features such as checking train times, booking tickets without booking fees, and arranging assistance for disabled passengers. Presently, seven train operators, accounting for about one-third of journeys, are already in public hands. Further nationalisations are anticipated in 2026, including Greater Anglia, South Western Railway, and c2c.
Importantly, GBR will reuse the double-arrow National Rail logo, a legacy of British Rail, connecting the new branding to existing passenger information branding on the rail network.
