FirstGroup-run operator of the Devon and Cornwall branch lines, the Dawlish sea wall and the Cotswold Line; passing to public ownership on 13 December 2026.
Great Western Railway runs trains from London Paddington to the West of England, South Wales and the Cotswolds. FirstGroup has held the franchise since 1996 (as First Great Western until the 2015 rebrand). Under the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024 the operation transfers to DfT Operator on 13 December 2026, when the trading name is expected to be retained.
GWR's scenic value lies in Devon and Cornwall: the Riviera Line along the Dawlish sea wall, and the community rail branches to St Ives, Looe, Gunnislake, Newquay, Barnstaple, Falmouth and Exmouth, most worked by Class 150 and 158 diesel units. The Cotswold Line from Oxford to Worcester and Hereford is worked by Class 800 bi-mode trains.
Ranger tickets including the Devon Day Ranger, Cornwall Ranger, Ride Cornwall and the Freedom of Devon and Cornwall Rover are sold on the GWR website and at stations. GWR also operates the Night Riviera sleeper between Paddington and Penzance.
Scenic lineBrunel's railway along the Exe estuary and the open sea at Dawlish and Teignmouth, the most photographed stretch of main line in Britain.
Scenic lineFour miles along the cliffs above Carbis Bay and Porthminster beach to St Ives, widely rated the most beautiful branch line in England.
Scenic lineA twisting single-track branch that reverses at Coombe Junction and follows the tidal East Looe river down a wooded valley to the fishing port of Looe.
Scenic lineOut of Plymouth beside the Tamar, over the 120-foot Calstock Viaduct and up a steep, reversing branch into the old mining country around Gunnislake.
Scenic lineThrough the china clay country and the wooded Luxulyan valley, under Treffry's viaduct, to the surfing beaches of Newquay on Cornwall's north coast.
Scenic lineFollowing the rivers Yeo and Taw through mid Devon's farmland, named after Henry Williamson's otter, to Barnstaple and the Tarka Trail.
Scenic lineThrough the Evenlode valley and the Cotswold hills from Oxford by Charlbury, Kingham and Moreton-in-Marsh to Evesham, Worcester and the Malverns.
