Editing National Rail (section)

==Train operating companies (TOCs)==
{{Unreferenced section|date=September 2023}}
{{main article|List of companies operating trains in the United Kingdom}}
Twenty-five privately owned train operating companies were each franchised for a defined term by government in 1996–97. They operated passenger trains in Great Britain. However, franchises have ceased to exist and are being replaced by operating contracts, which do not involve significant commercial risk for the operators. The [[Rail Delivery Group]] is the trade association representing the TOCs and provides core services, including the provision of the National Rail Enquiries service. It also runs [[Rail Settlement Plan]], which formerly allocated ticket revenue to the various TOCs, and Rail Staff Travel, which manages travel facilities for railway staff. It does not compile the national timetable, which is the joint responsibility of the Office of Rail and Road (allocation of paths) and Network Rail (timetable production and publication). Since March 2020 all ticket revenue has been collected by the Department for Transport, which also pays the operators' costs.