Media centre

Tuesday 4 Apr 2006

NETWORK RAIL LAUNCHES 2006 BUSINESS PLAN FOR SCOTLAND:

Region & Route:

Scotland’s Railway: Scotland

• BEST TRAIN PUNCTUALITY FOR SIX YEARS • £40 MILLION TO GROW THE RAILWAY IN SCOTLAND Network Rail today announces an extra £40 million to be spent on growing the railway in the Scotland following a massive 30% reduction in delays since the creation of the company. Scotland Route Director, David Simpson, said: “Our 2006 Business Plan sets out Network Rail’s ambitious agenda for growing the railway in Scotland.  Make no mistake – our plans are for a better-performing and more efficient rail network, meeting the aspirations of all our customers.” Network Rail’s new money for funding enhancements over the next three years has been made possible as a result of the company beating its targets.  This money will be reinvested in the rail network rather than given to shareholders due to Network Rail’s status as a company limited by guarantee. The new cash pot will fund or part-fund enhancements that will deliver benefits for passengers and freight, helping to grow the railway. The Business Plan 2006 reveals:

• £1.5 billion will be spent operating, maintaining and renewing the railway in Scotland over the next three years
• More than £40 million of additional investment to grow and enhance the railway in Scotland

• A projected increase in trains-on-time to 87.3% by March 2007 and 90% by 2009

·         A projected fall in delays of 124,000 minutes in Scotland over the next three years Chief Executive, John Armitt, said: “Network Rail’s strong performance, focus on value for money and status as a company limited by guarantee has allowed us to free up new money to spend on growing the railway.  This will be spent on the passengers’ priorities and meeting the needs of our freight customers. We look forward to working with train and freight operators, and other stakeholders, to determine how it can be best spent.” This investment will help to support the ever-growing customer demand, with 42% growth in passenger numbers and 58% growth in freight tonnes kilometres over the last ten years and an increase in demand of 30% over the next ten years predicted on the UK rail network. The Business Plan 2006 also reveals that in Scotland, over the past year, 85.8% of trains ran on time – the best performance for six years. John Armitt concluded: “In the last three years we have focussed on getting all the basics right: creating the right structure; improving performance; controlling and reducing costs; developing our people; and being safe in everything we do. I would like to thank our industry partners for their support over this time and look forward to continuing to work with them as we focus our efforts on working together to deliver a growing railway that meets needs of the country. “Network Rail is now looking forward, looking for new, innovative, and value for money ways to grow the railway to accommodate increasing passenger and freight demand.”