MELBOURNE has new train and tram operators, with the staff behind the Connex and Yarra Trams brands having handed over the system to new management at 3.01am today.

Connex bowed out with a whimper on Friday, announcing its failure to run the city's trains on time in the past month meant yearly and monthly ticket holders could claim two free tickets as compensation.

In its final days, the operator was also forced to impound another of the city's Siemens trains because it had overshot a train platform last week.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that the new French operator of Melbourne's tram system, Keolis, will have to run fewer trams on time than the previous operator managed to do.