Connex South Eastern

Connex South Eastern was a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It was owned by the Connex Group and operated between 14 October 1996 and 9 November 2003. The company operated passenger services in South London and Kent. The network was previously part of the Southern Region of British Railways and later Network SouthEast. The dense South Eastern network of train services runs into Victoria, and to Charing Cross and Cannon Street via London Bridge. The franchise was originally due to run until 2011, but in June 2003 the Strategic Rail Authority decided to cut the South Eastern franchise short at the end of 2003, citing poor financial management and "a serious loss of confidence... in the ability of the company to run the business in its widest sense". Connex South Eastern lost its franchise at midnight on 8 November 2003 when train services were taken over by South Eastern Trains, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Strategic Rail Authority.