Train passengers in south west London and Surrey could benefit from more frequent services to London as part of proposals announced by a railway operator.

Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), the parent company of Southern and Thameslink, has begun the second round of consultation talks for the planned changes to the 2018 rail services.

Changes include an all-day service from Epsom to London Bridge calling at Sutton and West Croydon every half an hour throughout the day. Currently this is only runs a handful of times during peak hours.

A train from Carshalton to London Victoria with a stop at Clapham Junction in between will run four times an hour compared to the present day two trains an hour.

Phil Hutchinson, Head of Strategic Planning for GRT, told Sutton Guardian: “The Southern service is the most congested in the UK.

“As a result we need to improve the frequency of trains and modernise the way we work. The new plans will be less complicated, easier to operate with self-contained routes and the service will run more reliably.”

GTR will also introduce 115 new trains in total which amounts to 1140 carriages.

Mr Hutchinson said: “The new trains are very spacious, roomy with big aisles and you can walk all the way though as there are no cabins.”

The southern routes will be “completely redesigned to make things more simplified”.

According to GTR, the number of passengers using Southern, Gatwick Express, Thameslink and Great Northern services has doubled in the last 12 years.

GTR’s CEO Charles Horton said: “Our networks are some of the busiest and most complex in the world. Passenger journeys have doubled in recent years, the fastest growth in the UK. Sitting still is not an option.

“That's why we've been hard at work, delivering the transformation needed. By improving tracks and stations, introducing new trains and adding more destinations, we're making sure our passengers’ railway is fit for the future. We are still in transition but the work is nearly complete.

“We started our consultation in the autumn – one of the biggest ever conducted – and we’ve listened and taken on board where possible passengers’ views on the new routes and developed weekday timetables for final comment. They’ve been designed with reliability at their heart, offering new direct routes across London and more seamless journeys.”