Passenger rail franchising in Great Britain

Passenger rail franchising in Great Britain was the system of contracting the operation of the passenger services on the railways of Great Britain to private companies, which was in effect from 1996 before being greatly altered in 2020, and effectively abolished in May 2021. In 2024 rail franchising was formally abolished, with rail contracts set to enter state control at the expiration of their contracts from 2025 onwards.

Source: Wikipedia — Passenger rail franchising in Great Britain (CC BY-SA 4.0)