Southeastern (train operating company)
Southeastern is a train operating company that began operations in
south-east England on
1 April 2006, replacing the former publicly-owned operator
South Eastern Trains. They serve
Kent, parts of
East Sussex, and operate south-east
London commuter routes. The London termini of their services are
Charing Cross,
Blackfriars,
Cannon Street, and
Victoria. Southeastern operate on 773 miles (1237 km) of track, with 178 stations. 82% of their train services run into London.
The company's formal name, under which they mounted their bid for the franchise, is
London and South Eastern Railway. They are continuing to use the logo of the preceding company, and appear not to have any present plans to change the livery of their trains, which their predecessors inherited in turn from
Connex South Eastern.
Southeastern is owned by
Govia, who also operate the South Central franchise (which overlaps with Southeastern in some areas) under the name
Southern.
Franchise
Since privatisation the
franchise to run trains in this area has changed hands three times. The first company to win the franchise in 1996 was
Connex, which operated under the name
Connex South Eastern. The company gained bad publicty and their franchise was cut short in 2003. On 21st November 2003 train services were taken over by
South Eastern Trains, a wholly owned subsidiary of the
Strategic Rail Authority until an alternative bidder could be found.
Main lines
From London termini (
Victoria,
London Bridge,
Waterloo East,
Charing Cross,
Blackfriars, and
Cannon Street) unless otherwise stated;
*
North Kent Line: services via
Dartford to
Gillingham*
Chatham Main Line: services via
Bromley South and
Chatham, dividing at
Faversham to
Ramsgate and
Dover*
Ashford via Maidstone East Line*
Ashford via
Sevenoaks (see
London to Ashford to Dover Line)
**
Ashford to Ramsgate (via Canterbury West) line**
Kent Coast Line: Ashford to Ramsgate (via Folkestone and Dover)
*
Ashford via
Croydon East and
Redhill â€" uses part of the
Brighton Main Line*
Hastings Line (
Hastings via
Tunbridge Wells)
*
London Bridge to
Tunbridge Wells (via
Redhill and
East Croydon) â€" uses part of the
Brighton Main Line*
Horsham to
Tunbridge Wells (via
Gatwick and
Redhill) â€" uses part of the
Brighton Main LineSuburban lines
The suburban services run to:
*
Sevenoaks: two services â€" one via
Grove Park, and one via
Bromley South*
Hayes line*
Mid-Kent Line*
Orpington via
Lewisham and via Bromley South
*
Dartford via:
North Kent Line, the
Bexleyheath Line, and the
Dartford Loop Line*
Bromley North LineRural lines
*
Medway Valley Line, some services extend to
Tonbridge, and occasionally to
Gatwick Airport*
Sheerness LineSoutheastern operate a fleet of about four hundred trains, all of which are electrical
multiple units.
| Class | Top speed | Number | Cars per set | Seat layout | Number of seats | Routes operated | Built |
|---|
| mph | km/h |
|---|
| Class 375/3 Express Electrostar | 100 | 160 | 10 | 3 | 2+2 | 176 seats (164 std + 12 first) | Outer suburban and Express routes. | 2001-2002 |
| Class 375/6 Express Electrostar | 100 | 160 | 30 | 4 | 2+2 | 242 seats (218 std + 24 first) | Outer suburban and Express routes. | 1999-2001 |
| Class 375/7 Express Electrostar | 100 | 160 | 15 | 4 | 2+2 | 242 seats (218 std + 24 first) | Outer suburban and Express routes. | 2001-2002 |
| Class 375/8 Express Electrostar | 100 | 160 | 30 | 4 | 2+2 | 242 seats (218 std + 24 first) | Outer suburban and Express routes. | 2004-2005 |
| Class 375/9 Outer Suburban Electrostar | 100 | 160 | 27 | 4 | 2+3 | 277 seats (253 std + 24 first) | Outer suburban and Express routes. | 2003-2004 |
| Class 376 Suburban Electrostar | 75 | 120 | 36 | 5 | 2+2 | 344 seats (216 std + 12 tip-up + 116 perch) | Metro routes | 2004-2005 |
| Class 465 Networker | 75 | 120 | 147 | 4 | 3+2 (except 465014, which is 2+2) | ? | 465/0, 465/1 and 465/2 Metro routes only.
465/9 Outer suburban routes only. | 1991-1994 |
| Class 466 Networker | 75 | 120 | 43 | 2 | 3+2 (except 466017, which is 2+2) | ? | With 465/0, 465/1, 465/2 and 466 Metro routes only.
With 465/9, Outer suburban routes only. | 1993-1994 |
| Class 508 | 75 | 120 | 12 | 3 | ? | ? | Medway Valley Line and extension on to Tonbridge, and Gatwick Airport / Horsham, Sheerness Line | ? |
|
|
The new high-speed services will use these trains on order from Hitachi. |
Southeastern will operate the
high-speed domestic services (including the
Olympic Javelin service that is to run during the
2012 Summer Olympics in London) that will run from
London St Pancras to the coast on the
Channel Tunnel Rail Link following the line's completion. The new company have made a point of advertising part-owner
SNCF's experience operating and integrated high-speed train services on the French
TGV network.
A fleet of twenty-eight six-carriage
Shinkansen-derived high-speed ‘A-trains' have already been ordered from
Hitachi for this route.
[ £250 Million Contract Signed for New High Speed Train Fleet for Kent SRA, 1/6/05] This is Hitachi's first train sale in Britain. They will be known as
Class 395 when in service.
High-speed services are expected to begin in December 2008, but the first four trains are to be delivered in 2007 for testing and driver training.
[[http://www.govia.info/doc/thefastfuture/timeline.html The Channel Tunnel Rail LinkCountdown to 2009] Govia, 2005.]The first train will be named after Dame
Kelly Holmes, a British gold-medal athlete, with further trains to be named after British personalities associated with speed.
The company plans to operate up to ten trains per hour at peak times, with four trains per hour off-peak
[Southeastern Newsletter Summer 2006]:
Routes
Peak Hours| Route | Stations called | | London-Ebbsfleet - 2 tph | London St Pancras, Stratford, Ebbsfleet |
| London-Rochester - 3 tph | London - Rochester; London St Pancras, Stratford, Gravesend, Higham, Strood, Rochester |
| London - Broadstairs - 3 tph | London St Pancras, Stratford, Ebbsfleet, Chatham, Gillingham, Rainham, Sittingbourne, Faversham, Whitstable, Herne Bay, Birchington on Sea, Margate, Broadstairs |
| London - Folkestone/Margate - 2 tph | London St Pancras, Ebbsfleet, Ashford (train divides) |
| Ashford, Wye, Canterbury West, Sturry, Minster, Ramsgate, Broadgate, Margate |
| Ashford, Sandling, Folkstone West, Folkestone Central |
Off Peak Hours| Route | Stations called | | London-Sittingbourne - 2 tph | London St Pancras, Stratford, Ebbsfleet, Gravesend, Higham, Strood, Rochester, Chatham, Gillingham, Rainham, Sittingbourne |
| London - Margate - 1 tph | London St Pancras, Wye, Canterbury West, Sturry, Minster, Ramsgate, Broadstairs, Margate |
| London - Folkstone - 1 tph | London St Pancras, Sandling, Folkestone West, Folkestone Central |
*
Olympic Javelin*
South Eastern Trains*
Connex South Eastern*
Network SouthEast*
Southern Region of British Railways*
Southern Railway*
South Eastern and Chatham Railway*
South Eastern Railway*
London, Chatham and Dover Railway*
Southeastern official web site*
alwaystouchout.com on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (includes information about the planned domestic services)
