First Great British Railways trains for Anglia unveiled as integrated railway delivers early benefits

The first trains to carry the new Great British Railways identity for Anglia have been unveiled at London Liverpool Street station today (16 July), marking a visible milestone in the creation of a simpler, more joined-up railway that is already delivering benefits for passengers across the East of England.

Rail Minister Lord Peter Hendy joined GBR Anglia Managing Director Jamie Burles and colleagues from c2c, Greater Anglia and Network Rail Anglia at the event, where c2c Class 357 units 357008 & 357020 and Greater Anglia Class 720 units 720144 & 720501 were displayed in the distinctive red, white and blue Great British Railways livery.

GBR Anglia brings c2c, Greater Anglia and Network Rail Anglia together under one unified leadership team, aligning track and train more closely to improve reliability, resilience and customer service across the region.

The new identity reflects the three organisations increasingly planning and delivering as one railway, supporting faster and better decisions, clearer accountability and more coordinated services for passengers.

Rail Minister, Lord Peter Hendy, said:

“Track and train are two sides of the same coin but for too long they operated independently of each other, with passengers and taxpayers left to bear the consequences.

“By uniting track and train under one identity and leadership in Anglia, we’re creating a more reliable service that will put passengers first. It’s all part of our plan to deliver the biggest reform of our railways in a generation, creating more, growth, jobs and homes as we work to set up Great British Railways.”

Jamie Burles, Managing Director of GBR Anglia, said:

“Seeing the first GBR Anglia trains together at London Liverpool Street is a proud moment and a clear sign of the railway we are building. More importantly, the new identity reflects c2c, Greater Anglia and Network Rail Anglia increasingly planning and delivering as one railway.

“We are already creating greater flexibility across our train fleets, planning major events more effectively and using closer track-and-train working to trial new services for customers.

“There is much more to do, but we have made a strong start. Our focus is on turning that progress into better journeys and a more reliable, responsive and efficient railway for everyone who depends on us.”

The work under way across GBR Anglia extends far beyond the new identity.

Early progress includes securing approval for Greater Anglia Class 720 trains to operate on the c2c network, providing greater resilience and flexibility across the two train fleets and helping the railway respond more effectively when trains are unavailable or services are disrupted.

Teams from c2c, Greater Anglia and Network Rail Anglia have also worked together to support thousands of Southend United supporters travelling to Wembley, including through strengthened services on both routes between Southend and London.

Meanwhile, closer planning between Greater Anglia and Network Rail Anglia has enabled a trial of overnight Friday Stansted Express services. Engineering plans were reviewed and adjusted where possible, while protecting essential maintenance, to provide additional travel options for customers arriving on late flights or travelling for early departures.

Further work is under way to coordinate maintenance more closely, expand the use of on-train technology to identify potential infrastructure faults earlier, improve data sharing and develop joint marketing to encourage rail travel to and from Southend.

Customers will begin to see more trains carrying the GBR Anglia identity over the coming weeks and months.

Further Class 357 trains will receive the new livery as they pass through c2c’s existing fleet repaint and planned maintenance programme, helping to deliver the transition efficiently and with minimal disruption to services.

Across the wider fleet, existing c2c and Greater Anglia logos will gradually be replaced by GBR Anglia branding. The internationally recognised Stansted Express identity will be retained and will transition to GBR Stansted Express.

Customers will also see the new identity introduced gradually across station signage and wayfinding, colleague materials and customer communications.

The transition will take place gradually, and customers will continue to see a mixture of GBR Anglia, Greater Anglia and c2c branding across the region for some time. Existing train services, tickets and customer arrangements will not change.

ENDS