Network Rail regulation and performance

Network Rail fined £200k after elderly signaller suffers ‘life-changing injuries’ in level crossing

13.12.18: Network Rail has been fined £200,000 after a 65-year-old man suffered life-changing injuries at a level crossing in Kent over three years ago. Sentenced at Maidstone Crown Court, the infrastructure owner was convicted of one offence u...

Consultation confirms public support for new rail link between Heathrow and the west

07.12.18: Plans for a new rail link between Heathrow and the west have been overwhelmingly supported in a new consultation published by Network Rail. The proposals set out a new rail link between the Great Western Main Line and London Heathrow Airpor...

Glaister Report: ORR forces Network Rail to report back on ‘failing’ timetabling process by April

07.12.18: After deciding that Network Rail is breaching its network licence by failing to deliver on its performance obligations, the ORR has ordered the infrastructure owner to publish a plan, by 1 April 2019, outlining a series of major points regarding...

First CP6 contracts awarded by Network Rail in major £645m deal

05.12.18: The first major contracts for CP6 have been awarded by Network Rail, worth a combined £645m. Story Contracting has been announced as the winner of ‘Lot 2,’ which covers renewals and enhancement work in Scotland and is wort...

Grayling ‘should resign’ over ‘appalling’ timetable chaos as MPs call for fare freeze

04.12.18: MPs have demanded a freeze in rail fares and called for the transport secretary to resign over the “chaotic roll-out” of the new railway timetables introduced in May, which hit nearly half of all passenger services up and down the co...

ORR takes formal action against Network Rail over poor performance

29.11.18: The ORR is taking formal action against Network Rail to improve its performance as figures show punctuality and reliability are at their lowest levels since the current five-year control period began. The regulator has issued a Provisional...

New railway technology to save track workers thousands of hours on SWR

27.11.18:  New technology to help carry out overnight and maintenance work is set to be rolled out across the South Western Railway and will save track workers an extra 1,600 hours a year. The railway technology will allow for a more efficient...

Major overhaul of one of country’s longest tunnels sees delays fall by a fifth

23.11.18: A major refurbishment of Sevenoaks tunnel has seen a 20% reduction in delays and halved journey times for passengers, even as the £21m infrastructure renewal nears completion. One of the longest tunnels in southern England, Sevenoaks...

Network Rail seeks £45m integration partner for ECML digital railway

20.11.18: Network Rail has today launched the search for a private-sector partner to deliver a major digital railway transformation across the East Coast Main Line (ECML). In September, Network Rail launched the procurement for a long-term train...

Finding positives in negative short-circuiting devices

09.11.18: Sponsored interview  Anything that brings about safety and time-saving benefits is a valued improvement for the rail industry, which is why the introduction of Negative Short-Circuiting Devices (NSCDs) to make isolations safer and faster...

Digital Railway: All change on the ECML

06.11.18: Network Rail route programme director, Toufic Machnouk, explains why only a radically new approach to contracting will deliver a better service for passengers. Network Rail’s current search for a train control partner to renew train c...

Network Rail warn of Christmas upgrade disruption to one of UK’s busiest rail junctions

02.11.18: Network Rail has announced winter plans for an £8.2m upgrade to Battersea Pier, one of the UK’s busiest railway junctions, which will cause disruption to passengers across Sussex, Surrey and South London this Christmas. The plan...

Network Rail urge businesses to join innovation project to improve passenger journeys

02.11.18:   Network Rail has launched a project with Transport Systems Catapult (TSC) to build live demonstrators of innovative technologies which could improve passenger journeys, and are seeking partners to help. The TSC-led project aims...

ORR approves Network Rail’s £35bn CP6 spending plans

31.10.18: The ORR has today set outs its final determination on Network Rail’s £35bn plans for CP6, the five-year period from 1 April next year. The rail regulator has approved £7.7bn of spending for the maintenance of existing rail...

Understanding the sale of the arches

30.10.18: David Biggs, managing director of Network Rail Property, sheds some light on the sale of the infrastructure owner’s commercial estate. We announced last month that we’d agreed terms with a joint venture of Telereal Trillium and...