Island Line Trains
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| Overview | |
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| Franchise(s) | Island Line 13 October 1996 – 3 February 2007 Part of South Western franchise 4 February 2007 – Present |
| Main area(s) | Isle of Wight |
| Fleet size | 5 |
| Stations called at | 8 |
| National Rail abbreviation | IL |
| Parent company | South West Trains (Stagecoach) |
| Website | www.southwesttrains.co.uk/island-line.aspx |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 8 miles 34 chains |
| Gauge | Standard |
| Operating speed | 45 mph (72 km/h) max. |
Island Line Trains is a train operating company which runs the 8 1⁄2-mile Island Line on the Isle of Wight. Island Line is part of South West Trains, a rail franchise in the United Kingdom owned by Stagecoach.
From 1985 to 1990 rail services on the Isle of Wight operated under the brand RydeRail. In 1986 Network SouthEast was created, itself part of British Rail, and RydeRail was incorporated into it as a sub-brand.
The name Island Line first came into use in 1989, when Class 483 trains were introduced on the route, and this new brand name and a logo were included on the trains' livery. However, this re-branding did not officially occur until 1994, when it had completely replaced all RydeRail branding.
From 1989 until 1996, Island Line was a sub-brand of Network SouthEast. In 1996, passenger services on the line were privatised as the Island Line franchise, with the winning bid from Stagecoach (legal name Island Line Limited). On commencing operations on 13 October 1996 the name Island Line for the passenger service was retained.
Island Line was the only passenger franchise that included maintenance of the infrastructure in addition to the running of passenger services. Island Line was reportedly Britain’s most reliable and punctual train company; the shortness and simplicity of the route may contribute to this.
The Island Line franchise was, until February 2007, the smallest train operating company on the National Rail network. It was combined with the South West franchise to form the new South Western franchise in an effort to reduce the number of Train Operating Companies.
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