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Thursday 17 Mar 2005

NETWORK RAIL CUTS QUARTER THREE DELAYS BY 16%:

Region & Route:

National

BEST THIRD QUARTER PERFORMANCE FOR FIVE YEARS Network Rail cut delays by 16.25% in the third quarter of 2004/5, while passenger satisfaction ratings increased and complaints fell, reflecting the best autumn punctuality figures for five years. The SRA’s ‘National Rail Trends’, published today, show overall train performance increased to 80.3% of trains running on time compared to 76.4% in the same period last year and has continued the recovery from the post Hatfield slump of just 64.3% in Q3 2000/1. Network Rail’s contribution to improving services for passengers was to slash delay minutes caused by rail infrastructure failures by 551,115 minutes in Q3 2004/5.  John Armitt, Chief Executive, said: “We have been set demanding targets to improve punctuality and we are delivering.  Last year’s improving trend has continued into 2005 as delays continue to fall.” Network Rail has taken numerous steps to improve performance:-

• Better seasonal preparedness – delays down to Autumn weather reduced by 42% compared to last year
• Closer partnership with train operators – six integrated control centres now operational covering almost two thirds of the country
• Improving asset condition with track assets 32% better than target
• 15,000 maintenance workers brought back in house delivering big performance gains and over £100 million in cost savings

Total delay minutes for October – December 2004 were 2.8 million compared to 3.4 million in 2003, 4.4 million in the same period in 2002 and 7.9 million in Q3 2000. But the improvements seen in quarter three 04/05 are only part of the story as the improvement in train performance is a consistent trend that has now seen 18 months of continuous improvement. John Armitt concluded: “Our people have worked immensely hard to deliver improvements and deliver them consistently, month in, month out.  But we cannot sit still and are impatient to see even more progress as we work hand-in-hand with the train operators to ensure a better service for passengers.”