East Anglia

Greater Anglia Driving Van Trailer at Ipswich in June 2014
Current operator	Greater Anglia
Main Route(s)	Great Eastern Main Line West Anglia Main Line
Dates of operation	1 April 2004 – 4 February 2012 (National Express East Anglia) 5 February 2012 – 20 September 2026 (Greater Anglia)
Route map

v t e Greater Anglia
Legend
Route with limited service Station with limited service Great Eastern  GE   SE  Stansted Express Inter-City  IC   WA  West Anglia Regional  R
Cromer  R   R  Sheringham West Runton Roughton Road Gunton North Walsham Worstead Hoveton & Wroxham  IC   R  Norwich Salhouse Wymondham Spooner Row Attleborough  WA  King's Lynn Eccles Road Watlington Harling Road Downham Market Thetford Littleport Brandon  R  Peterborough Lakenheath Whittlesea Shippea Hill March Manea Brundall Gardens  WA  Ely Brundall Buckenham Lingwood Cantley Acle Reedham Great Yarmouth  R  Berney Arms Haddiscoe Somerleyton Oulton Broad North Diss Lowestoft  R  Oulton Broad South Beccles Brampton Halesworth Darsham Saxmundham Wickham Market Melton Woodbridge Westerfield Stowmarket Derby Road Needham Market Trimley Felixstowe  R  Elmswell Ipswich  R   GE  Thurston Harwich Town  GE  Bury St Edmunds Dovercourt Kennett Harwich International Wrabness Waterbeach Mistley Newmarket Dullingham Manningtree Cambridge North Walton-on-the-Naze  GE   R  Cambridge Frinton-on-Sea Shelford Kirby Cross Whittlesford Parkway Clacton-on-Sea  GE  Great Chesterford Thorpe-le-Soken Audley End Weeley Newport Great Bentley Elsenham Alresford Wivenhoe  R   SE  Stansted Airport Hythe Stansted Mountfitchet Colchester Town  GE  Bishop's Stortford Sawbridgeworth Colchester Harlow Mill Sudbury  GE  Harlow Town Bures Roydon Chappel & Wakes Colne Marks Tey  GE   WA  Hertford East Kelvedon Ware Braintree  GE  St Margarets Braintree Freeport Rye House Cressing White Notley Broxbourne Cheshunt Witham Hatfield Peverel Waltham Cross Chelmsford Ingatestone  GE  Southminster Southend Victoria  GE  Burnham-on-Crouch Prittlewell Althorne Southend Airport North Fambridge Rochford South Woodham Ferrers Hockley Battlesbridge Rayleigh Edmonton Green Wickford Seven Sisters Billericay Enfield Lock Shenfield Brimsdown Ponders End Meridian Water Northumberland Park Romford Tottenham Hale Seven Kings Lea Bridge Hackney Downs Stratford  WA   WA   GE   IC   SE  London Liverpool Street

The East Anglia franchise is a railway franchise for passenger trains on the Great Eastern Main Line and West Anglia Main Lines in England. It commenced operating in April 2004 when the Anglia and Great Eastern franchises, together with the West Anglia part of the West Anglia Great Northern franchise, were combined to form the Greater Anglia franchise.

Initially operated by National Express East Anglia, in February 2012 it was taken over by Greater Anglia. In May 2015 the Liverpool Street to Chingford/Cheshunt and Enfield Town and Romford to Upminster services transferred to London Overground, and the Liverpool Street to Shenfield services transferred to TfL Rail. Upon being re-tendered in 2016, it was retained by Abellio and rebranded Greater Anglia as specified by the Department for Transport.

In 2002, as part of a franchise reorganisation by the Strategic Rail Authority, it was announced the Anglia and Great Eastern franchises together with the West Anglia part of the West Anglia Great Northern franchise would be combined to form the Greater Anglia franchise.^[1] This was part of a Strategic Rail Authority strategy to reduce the number of train operating companies providing services from a single London terminal. This was expected to improve efficiency and reliability.^[2]

In April 2003 the Strategic Rail Authority announced Arriva, GB Railways and National Express had been shortlisted to bid for the new franchise.^[3]

In December 2003 the Strategic Rail Authority awarded the franchise to National Express.^[4][5] with the services operated by Anglia Railways, First Great Eastern and West Anglia Great Northern transferred to One on 1 April 2004. The franchise was run until March 2011, with provision for a three-year extension to 2014 if performance targets were met. The franchise was originally branded as One before being rebranded as National Express East Anglia in February 2008 as part of a company wide rebranding programme.^[6]

In November 2009, the Department for Transport announced National Express was to lose the Greater Anglia franchise in March 2011 rather than be granted an extension to operate it until March 2014. The decision followed National Express defaulting on the National Express East Coast franchise even though National Express East Anglia had met all of its targets required for the franchise to be extended.^[7]

In June 2010 following the 2010 general election, the Department for Transport announced the replacement process for the franchise would be put on hold pending a review of the franchising process resulting in an extension until February 2012 being granted.^[8]

When tendering restarted, it was for a short-term franchise which would give the government time to plan changes in rail franchising policy based on Roy McNulty's Rail Value for Money Study. It also covered the period of the 2012 Olympic Games. The franchise was originally to run from 5 February 2012 until July 2014.^[9]

In March 2011, the Department for Transport announced Abellio, Go Ahead and Stagecoach had been shortlisted for the new franchise,^[10] with the Invitation to Tender issued in April 2011.^[11] In October 2011, the franchise was awarded to Abellio^[12] with the services operated by National Express East Anglia transferred to Greater Anglia on 5 February 2012.

In March 2013, the Secretary of State for Transport announced the franchise would be extended until 15 October 2016.^[13] However, on 31 May 2015 the Liverpool Street to Chingford/Cheshunt and Enfield Town and Romford to Upminster services transferred to London Overground^[14][15] and the Liverpool Street to Shenfield services to TfL Rail.^[16][17]

In late 2013, Greater Anglia was rebranded as Abellio Greater Anglia.

The process of tendering for the new franchise began on 19 February 2015 with the franchise renamed the East Anglia franchise.^[18]

In June 2015, an Abellio (60%)/Stagecoach (40%) joint venture, FirstGroup and National Express were shortlisted to bid for the franchise.^[19] On 9 December 2015 it was announced that Stagecoach had pulled out of the joint bid with Abellio, and that Abellio would continue the bid alone.^[20]

In August 2016, it was announced that Abellio had successfully bid to operate the new franchise running from 16 October 2016 until 11 October 2025.^[21] A franchise commitment is to replace the entire fleet with 1,043 new carriages. Bombardier Transportation's Derby Litchurch Lane Works will build 665 Class 720 Aventra electric multiple unit vehicles,^[22] while 378 Class 745 and Class 755 Stadler Flirt electric multiple unit carriages will work between London and Norwich, and London and Stansted Airport.

The franchise was rebranded back to Greater Anglia on 16 October 2016 as specified in the franchise contract. In March 2017 Abellio sold a 40% stake in the business to Mitsui.^[23][24]

In 2021, following the COVID-19 emergency measures, Greater Anglia was given a direct award contract, replacing its franchise agreement, with a core term until 15 September 2024 and expiring on 20 September 2026.^[25]

The invitation to tender was published on 17 September 2015 and included the following requirements.^[26]

• introduce 180 additional weekly services, running on Mondays to Sundays to stations including Cambridge, Norwich, Stansted Airport, Southend and London Liverpool Street
• introduce two 90-minute services in each direction between Norwich and London
• improve the quality of trains running on East Anglia's network, providing a modern service with state of the art trains; extra points will be awarded to bidders who include plans to trial new technologies in rolling stock
• introduce free Wi-Fi for all passengers across the network
• meet "challenging targets" to reduce crowding on the busiest services
• introduce one 60-minute service in each direction between Ipswich and London