What Rail Delivery Group does

Rail Delivery Group (RDG) is the central coordinating body for Britain's rail industry, founded in its current form in June 2011 following the McNulty rail value-for-money study and tracing its lineage to the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC, established 1993 after privatisation). RDG operates critical national infrastructure on behalf of its members—passenger train operating companies, freight operators, owning groups, Network Rail, and HS2—including Darwin real-time arrival/departure predictions, the Knowledgebase content engine, the Online Journey Planner (OJP), the Product Management System for fares, the Rail Availability and Reservation Service (RARS, supporting 125 million reservations in 2022), the Rail Data Marketplace (1,000+ registered users), and the Green Travel Data carbon calculator covering approximately 6.5 million origin-destination combinations. It also runs consumer-facing services such as National Rail Enquiries, the Railcard programme (7M+ holders, saving an average of £140 annually), Passenger Assist (2.6 million requests in 2024/25), and the Rail Staff Travel concessionary scheme.

RDG's business model is fundamentally membership-driven: train operating companies, owning groups, freight operators, and Network Rail fund the organisation through membership fees (with a mandatory licence condition incorporated in 2013). Supplementary revenue streams include stakeholder services income from government bodies (DfT, Transport Scotland, Transport for Wales), data licensing to app developers and retailers via Darwin/KB/OJP feeds and the Rail Data Marketplace, and retailer accreditation and settlement fees through the Rail Settlement Plan that redistributes ticket revenues to operators. Its sub-brands include National Rail Enquiries, Railcards, Rail Staff Travel, and the Rail Data Marketplace.

Strategically, RDG is positioned within the Williams-Shapps Plan transition toward Great British Railways, with Rail Partners having been spun off in May 2022 to handle advocacy. Recent product launches include the Digital PlusBus ticket (April 2026), a Live Facial Recognition trial at London Bridge (February 2026), and the Green Travel Data Phase 4 expansion (April 2025). The organisation is governed by a Board of representatives from owning groups, Network Rail, and HS2, and is led by Executive Chair and CEO Jacqueline Starr. RDG has approximately 300 employees, is headquartered in London (1 Puddle Dock), and operates as Rail Delivery Group Ltd, a UK private limited company.

Name

Rail Delivery Group

Legal name

Rail Delivery Group Ltd

Website

https://raildeliverygroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Rail Delivery Group is the central coordinating body for Britain's rail industry, operating real-time data systems (Darwin, OJP, RARS), the Rail Settlement Plan, Railcards (7M+ holders), and the Rail Data Marketplace on behalf of train operators, freight operators, Network Rail, and government members.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership fees from train operating companies: RDG is mainly funded through its members, who are the train operating companies that make up the rail industry across Britain. This is the primary revenue stream supporting the organization's operations.
2. Stakeholder services income: RDG receives income from other stakeholders for some of the services they provide beyond the core membership-funded activities.
3. Data licensing: RDG provides data feeds and licenses to third parties under formal license agreements. Data includes fares, timetable, routeing, and real-time information. Licensed users include app developers, travel agents, and retailers.
4. Retailer accreditation and settlement: RDG provides accreditation for ticket issuing systems and manages the Rail Settlement Plan, which redistributes monies paid for train tickets to train operators. Retailers pay fees for accreditation and bonding.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

Rail Delivery Group is a UK private limited company that brings together passenger train operating companies, freight operators, Network Rail, and HS2 to coordinate shared industry services, develop cross-operator technology platforms (Darwin, RARS, OJP, Rail Data Marketplace), administer the railcard schemes and National Rail Enquiries, and represent the rail industry in policy and regulatory matters. It functions as the convening body for the UK rail industry, providing shared infrastructure and services that no single operator could economically build or maintain alone.

Product overview

Rail Delivery Group (RDG) operates as a coordination body for Britain's rail industry, delivering essential services across four broad categories: (1) Essential Services including National Rail Enquiries, Railcards (7M+ holders), Customer Ticket Sales, Real-time Journey Information (Darwin), Rail Data Marketplace, and the Rail Availability & Reservation Service; (2) Customer Experience including Smarter Information Smarter Journeys (SISJ), Passenger Assist (2.6M requests/year), and accessibility initiatives; (3) Fares and Ticketing including Digital Ticketing, Product Management System, RDG Accreditation, and Business Travel services; and (4) Industry Programmes including Passenger Demand Forecasting, Traincrew Programme, Performance Restoration Framework, and Green Travel Data. RDG provides data APIs (Darwin, Knowledgebase, OJP) for third-party developers and manages the Rail Staff Travel scheme for industry employees. The organisation supports the transition to Great British Railways (GBR) and works with train operators, Network Rail, and government bodies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• National Rail Enquiries: Customer-facing service providing train times, fares, journey planning, and real-time information.
• Railcards
• Rail Staff Travel
• Rail Data Marketplace

Products and services

• National Rail Enquiries National customer information service providing journey planning, live train running information, and timetable data for UK rail passengers across all licensed operators.
• Railcards Cross-operator discount card scheme administered by RDG and accepted across all participating UK train operators, including 16-25, Senior, Two Together, Family & Friends, Network, and Disabled Persons railcards.
• Darwin Real-time train running information platform providing live arrival, departure, and disruption data feeds to operators, third-party apps, and customer information channels across the UK rail network.
• RARS (Rail Allocation and Reservation System) Industry allocation and reservation system managing seating inventory, capacity allocation, and booking data across UK passenger train operators for cross-operator ticketing.
• OJP (Online Journey Planner) Cross-operator journey planning engine providing routing, timetable integration, and fare computation across all UK rail operators and supporting National Rail Enquiries.
• PMS (Performance Measurement System) Industry performance measurement system tracking punctuality, reliability, and customer service metrics across UK passenger operators for regulatory reporting and benchmarking.
• Rail Data Marketplace Data sharing platform enabling UK rail operators to publish and consume standardised industry datasets for innovation, research, and third-party application development.
• RDG Industry Membership Services Core membership offering providing UK train operators and freight operators with industry representation, policy advocacy, shared services, and collective engagement with government and regulators.

Quantifiable outcome

• Rail industry generated £26 billion in economic, environmental, and social benefits over the past year
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Making The LeapminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 11 June 2026RDG selected Making The Leap as their charity partner for 2026/27. Making the Leap is a social mobility charity supporting young people from less advantaged backgrounds.
• Home OfficecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 21 May 2026RDG partnered with the Home Office, Department for Transport, Network Rail on the 'Enough' campaign to encourage passengers to report harassment on trains and stations. The campaign is part of broader efforts to improve safety and reduce violence against women and girls on the railway.
• Department for Transport (DfT)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 May 2026RDG partnered with DfT, Home Office, Network Rail, and British Transport Police on the Enough campaign to tackle sexual harassment and violence against women and girls on the railway. Joint effort to improve safety and encourage reporting.
• British Transport Police (BTP) - Violence Against Women and GirlscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 March 2026Rail industry and BTP set out joint actions to tackle violence and intimidation against women and girls in a new strategy. RDG leads industry coordination for this initiative.
• Network RailcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 February 2026Network Rail partnered with British Transport Police and RDG on the Live Facial Recognition (LFR) technology trial at London Bridge railway station. The six-month pilot uses NEC's NeoFace M40 algorithm with automatic deletion of unmatched images.
• British Transport Police (BTP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 February 2026BTP launched a six-month Live Facial Recognition pilot at London Bridge station in partnership with Network Rail, Department for Transport, and RDG. Aims to identify offenders in crime hotspots as part of broader UK policing reforms.
• Great British Railways (GBR) / Williams-Shapps PlancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRDG is working with colleagues across the industry as they move towards the creation of Great British Railways. Elements of RDG's activity will sit within the remit of an arm's length body as per the Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail recommendations.
• Community RailminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRDG partners with Community Rail organizations at the local level through various community engagement and development initiatives.
• Thrust CarboncoreTechnology or IntegrationRDG partnered with carbon emission experts at Thrust Carbon and rail data specialists at Fab Digital (fabrik) to develop accurate carbon emission figures for the Green Travel Data initiative.
• Fab DigitalcoreTechnology or IntegrationRail data specialists (fabrik) combined expertise with Thrust Carbon and RDG to compile rail data and accurately calculate rail emissions for all point-to-point rail journeys in Britain.
• Great British Railways Transition Team (GBRTT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGBRTT partnered with RDG on the Green Travel Data initiative, creating a recognized industry benchmark for carbon emissions.
• Transport FocuscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSISJ program governance is supported by Transport Focus, ensuring passenger perspectives are represented in customer information improvements.
• WPI EconomicsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWPI Economics conducted research commissioned by RDG revealing that Great Britain's rail industry generated £26 billion in economic, environmental, and social benefits.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Network Rail: Owns and operates Britain's rail infrastructure and is a core RDG member. Comparable as a national, member-funded rail coordinating/operating entity with shared governance overlap.
• European Union Agency for Railways (ERA): EU-level rail regulatory and coordination body. Comparable in mission to set pan-rail standards and coordinate operators across borders, with relevance to RDG's role in cross-system interoperability.
• Department for Transport (DfT): UK government body that owns DfT Operator Ltd and funds rail, and is a primary RDG counterpart for policy and partnership work. Comparable as the overarching rail-funder/policymaker that RDG interfaces with.

Direct peers

• Rail Partners: UK rail industry advocacy body spun off from RDG in May 2022. Closest direct peer, now handling many of RDG's former policy/representation functions on behalf of the same owning-group members.
• American Public Transportation Association (APTA): US trade association coordinating public and rail transit operators. Functionally comparable as an industry-wide membership body providing shared services, advocacy, and standards for rail operators.
• Association of American Railroads (AAR): US freight rail industry association representing Class I railroads. Comparable as a rail industry coordination body funded by operator members and providing shared data, standards, and policy services.
• International Union of Railways (UIC): Global rail industry association coordinating standards, data, and research across national operators. Comparable as a higher-tier rail coordination body with similar shared-services and data mandate.
• International Air Transport Association (IATA): Global airline industry trade association providing settlement (BSP), standards, and data services to member carriers. Strong functional analogue to RDG's settlement, accreditation, and shared-system role in rail.

Regional players

• Transport Focus: UK independent passenger watchdog that partners with RDG on the SISJ programme governance. Comparable as a UK transport passenger-representation body operating alongside rail operators.

Emerging players

• Trainline: Independent UK and European rail retailer using RDG data feeds and settlement. Comparable as a downstream consumer of RDG's data and accreditation infrastructure, and a potential disintermediator.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/RailDeliveryGrp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rail-delivery-group
• Instagraminstagram.com/raildeliverygroup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rail Delivery Group