London Overground concession extended for another two years

Arriva Rail London says that its concession to run London Overground services has been extended by another two years by Transport for London (TfL), and will now expire in May 2026.

The London Overground concession was introduced in 2007, which means that TfL takes revenue risk, while the operating company receives a fixed payment with adjustments made according to performance. Arriva receives a fixed payment for running the railway, with adjustments based on performance across a number of measures: operating performance; revenue protection; customer satisfaction; staff behaviour and presentation; and ‘KPIs’ (station, train quality standards, staff, and equipment availability).

The concession concept has generally been considered a success and is the model being proposed for the future Great British Railways to run national rail services when it replaces the current setup.

Arriva has operated the London Overground network since November 2016, so the latest concession extension will see it run the service for at least a decade before the contract is renewed again.

The two-year extension to 3 May 2026 also includes a TfL break option in May 2025, to be called by 31st August 2023.

Rory O’Neill, TfL’s General Manager for London Overground, said: I am very proud of everything we have achieved at London Overground but that would not be possible without the close collaboration with Arriva Rail London. There has been a great deal of change, not only at London Overground but in the rail industry, since the pandemic but ARL, supported by TfL, has risen to the challenge as we adapt to changing customer travelling habits. We continue to welcome growing numbers of customers back and with the help of ARL will build on that success.”

Pre-Covid, the London Overground carried 660,000 passengers on a typical weekday and managed 190 million passenger journeys a year, and is delivered by a workforce of around 1,500 staff.