Media centre

• New survey data reveals 59% of Brits don’t know what the ‘third’ or electric rail is
• 38% believe that electrocution from rail tracks can hurt but won’t cause serious injury
• “It's heartbreaking to see preventable injuries devastate lives”. New hard-hitting campaign is launched to educate people of the horrific consequences of straying onto the tracks as railway trespass spikes during British Summer Time

Network Rail and partners Drone Major Limited and Dronecloud have begun trials of “beyond visual line of sight” aerial operations on the railway to test a concept that could bring major improvements for passengers and rail freight customers.

Sir Andrew Haines, Chief Executive of Network Rail, has advised the Board that he has decided to retire from the company in October 2025. 

Railway 200 marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of the modern railway.

So far, over 300 events celebrating the past, present and future of the railway have been scheduled across Britain over the coming year. More events are being added to Railway 200's website every week.

The following is a list of events in April and May.

• Mind the ‘generation gap’: only 54% of Gen Z know fly-tipping is a crime compared to 92% of boomers
• Network Rail releases new research to highlight the negative impact fly-tipping has on the railway and wildlife habitats

Network Rail’s Air Operations team has been testing a powerful new camera system that combines high-resolution photography with laser surveys and near-infrared images to give engineers an incredible view of the network.

Network Rail has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Transport for NSW in Australia to develop rail technology, improve reliability, and drive sustainability that will benefit millions of rail passengers on both sides of the world. 

Network Rail’s 25 million neighbours – people living within 500m of a railway line – are set to benefit from a new digital service that will let people know about upcoming railway engineering work, emergency work and get updates about current maintenance and upgrade projects in ‘real-time’.