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Network Rail, Northern Rail and First TransPennine Express (FTPE) have signed a formal collaboration agreement aimed at putting value for passengers at the heart of the rail improvements planned for the rail network in the north of England over the next five years.

Work will start next month to rebuild a number of bridges in Chorley and Bolton as part of a £400m electrification programme to provide a better railway across the north of England.

Residents and local businesses are being invited to discover more about a multi-million pound investment which will remove one of the last remaining bottlenecks on the West Coast main line.

A footbridge is to replace a footpath level crossing on a busy section of the West Coast main line where trains travel in excess of 100mph.

Children and young people in Maidenhead are learning to stay safe on the railway by representatives from Network Rail, British Transport Police, First Great Western and Furze Platt Secondary School.

Rail passengers and road users in Metheringham are travelling over four improved level crossings and 19 miles of new signalling after engineers completed the latest phase of investment to modernise the Great Northern Great Eastern (GNGE) line between Peterborough and Doncaster via Lincoln.

Passengers using Carlisle station are benefitting from a £1.8 million investment to provide step-free access to platforms for the first time.

Network Rail Consulting has appointed Philip Chalk as director of asset management and maintenance - ANZ, with a focus on developing its consultancy business in New Zealand.