Various service changes and amenities have been introduced over the course of the two franchise periods, including the fitting of regenerative braking to its rolling stock (the first UK train operator to do so) in March 2007, the launch of Quiet Zones onboard its trains in early 2008, the provision of Wi-Fi in April 2017, and the rolling out of pay-as-you-go and National Rail ITSO smartcard ticket options over multiple years.

During December of that year, c2c announced an order with Porterbrook for six ten-car Class 720/6 Aventra EMUs in response to growing demand; these were introduced in September 2023.

Largely in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the franchise agreement was replaced by a rail contract on 19 July 2021 under which services have continued to be run.

In December 1995, the franchise was awarded to a management buyout; the handover was initially due to happen on 4 February 1996.

[4] The franchise period could have been reduced to seven years if the operator did not fulfil commitments made during the bidding phase to replace its rolling stock with new-build trains.

[1] Passenger numbers increased above forecasts which caused overcrowding as trains reached capacity at peak times.

[6] LTS Rail started serving West Ham station from 14 May 1999 to coincide with the opening of the Jubilee line extension.

[16] In June 2006, it was announced that portable X-ray machines and metal detectors would be randomly placed at stations and carried by officers on trains during summer 2006 to catch people carrying weapons, in a joint operation with Essex Police and British Transport Police, following trials at London Underground stations.

[17] A peak timetable introduced on 11 December 2006, with the aim of improving services for the Thurrock and London Riverside sections of the Thames Gateway, was withdrawn on 8 January 2007 after a campaign by passengers as a result of delays and cancellations that affected other lines on the network.

[20] In October 2007, c2c announced that the first coach of each unit would be made a Quiet Zone, where passengers are asked not to use their mobile phones or play music out loud.

[22] In October 2007, c2c announced that it had switched to renewably-generated electricity in all its stations, maintenance facilities and offices in a contract with E.ON UK, said to be the largest of its kind in the transport sector.

In December 2010, the Department for Transport granted National Express an extension until 26 May 2013 to allow DfT time to conduct a review of the franchising process.

On 9 November 2014, National Express was awarded the new 15-year Essex Thameside franchise, having successfully tendered against Abellio, FirstGroup and MTR Corporation.

[14] During December 2015, c2c introduced a new timetable to reflect long-term changes in passenger numbers at stations on the line.

[37][38] During the summer of 2019, c2c ran an hourly weekend limited stop service between Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness.

[40] In September 2019, it was announced that c2c had invested more than £10 million into a new self service ticketing system with a user-friendly self-service interface developed with Voodoo Park.

[52][53] In the lead up to the 2024 United Kingdom general election, the Labour Party of Keir Starmer committed itself to bring the passenger operations of the British rail network back under state ownership.

[54][55] Following its election in 2024, the government introduced the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024 that received the royal assent in November 2024.

From our point of view, one of the most important things it stands for is commitment to customers.National Express also referred to the c2c route as City to Coast.

[64] Although the Class 357 Electrostar trains are capable of running at 100 mph (160 km/h), the line's speed limit restricts them to only 75 mph (121 km/h), [65] To meet a 2014 franchise commitment, most services between Fenchurch Street and Barking have called at all stations during peak times since December 2015[30] As of January 2025[update] the off-peak Monday–Friday service is as follows:[64] On weekends, c2c operates a limited service to London Liverpool Street that diverges at Barking, and calls at Stratford instead of West Ham, Limehouse and Fenchurch Street.

[70] Pay-as-you-go payment by contactless bank card or smartphone is available at all stations between Fenchurch Street/Liverpool Street and Grays.

[74] During 2023, security teams employed by c2c and operating in partnership with the British Transport Police conducted a crackdown on fare evasion; the resulting fines generated in excess of £250,000 in under a year.

[75][76] Starting on 3 December 2023, fares were revised with a new weekday evening peak period introduced between 4pm and 7pm, during which off-peak tickets could no longer be used.

[81] The most elderly Class 302 units were removed from regular service on 4 July 1998, several sets were retained as spares in case of stock shortages.

However, both companies were experiencing an unexpected increase in passenger numbers and WAGN was unable to release more vehicles by December 1998.

[83] The franchise agreement was renegotiated in November 1998 to replace the entire LTS Rail fleet with new vehicles, allowing for the return of the Class 317s to WAGN and the planned elimination of slam-door stock by March 2002.

[88] In March 2007, after extensive trials, c2c began fitting regenerative braking to its fleet, becoming the first UK train operator to do so.

In late 2015 c2c adapted 20% of its carriages into a "Metro" configuration, involving removing seats around doorways and converting trains to a 2+2 layout.