So here’s what we know. The Mayor of London and the Government want a new partnership between Transport for London and the Department for Transport to improve London’s transport network. According to the published proposals, TfL will take over the inner-suburban railways – but that doesn’t include Thameslink and the other outer-suburban lines.
So it doesn’t look great: Thameslink will probably remain outside the integrated London system and the patchwork of commercial franchises will continue to run the long-distance commuter services. The plans are fairly vague, though, and they’re out for consultation. So, here’s what to do: read the plans (PDF), then write to railprospectus@tfl.gov.uk and tell the partners that Thameslink and the other suburban railways should be included in the plan.
And, if you’d like to know more about the proposals and the history, read this excellent long post on the London Reconnections blog.