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British trains are famously unreliable. Chances are if your train’s not cancelled, it’ll probably be delayed – and to make matters worse, you’ll almost certainly have had to fork out an absolute fortune for a ticket. However, some train lines are better than others. Some, in fact, are award-winningly good.
A London train line has just been crowned the best rail service in the entire UK for 2026. Picking up the top prize at the 2026 Rail Business Awards was London Northwestern Railway (LNR). The capital-based line and its sister-brand West Midlands Railway (WMR) celebrated the win after £1 billion’s worth of investment was pumped into new trains and infrastructure on the services. Clearly that has paid off.
LNR operates trains from London Euston along the West Coast Main Line, with trains reaching the Midlands and northwest. In recent years both winning brands have introduced new fleets, increasing capacity on its services by 40 percent. Also improving the service was LNR’s introduction of the spacious 730/2 electric train on routes to and from London Euston. These roomy carriages feature intelligent air conditioning, improved accessibility features and power points at every seat. LNR said that since the arrival of the 730/2 customer satisfaction on the line has risen by 20 percent.
Ian McConnell, managing director at LNR, said: ‘We are extremely proud to win “Train Operator of the Year”. This award is testament to the hard work of colleagues across our business, who have successfully introduced three new train fleets and future-proofed our train depots, while continuing to keep passengers moving every day.
‘It’s been a tremendous team effort, so it’s fantastic to be recognised for our achievements over the past year. We are committed to keeping up this high standard and continuing to improve, so we can deliver the best possible service for our customers and communities.’
London Northwestern was the most recent UK rail operator to be nationalised. You can find out when every service will come back under public control here.
Oh no: The Piccadilly line will be almost completely shut for two weekends in March.
But some good news: This major London airport is finally getting contactless payments for train tickets next month.
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