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Hundreds of thousands of passengers and freight users will experience long term benefits from over £100m of investment in improving Britain’s rail network over the Easter period. However, in making these improvements, some lines will see disruption over the Easter holiday and passengers are advised to check before they travel using www.nationalrail.co.uk/easter

Apprentices are important for the future of the railway and will stem skills shortage, say Network Rail employees

Network Rail has today published new and updated information on its online transparency portal, including spend on procurement, staff salaries breakdown, and a list of suppliers. It has also published a series of infographics detailing the investment during 2013/14 on areas such as track and bridge renewals, telecoms units and level crossings.

Network Rail is expanding its world-leading track renewal programme by purchasing a new £50m ballast cleaner and welcoming more than 500 employees, previously contractors, into the company. The move represents part of Network Rail’s commitment to minimise passenger disruption, reduce the cost of running the railway by 20 per cent over the next five years, and improve sustainability.

Network Rail will be awarding a series of contracts with contingent labour suppliers to provide workers across the network with a total minimum spend of £450m over five years.

Network Rail Consulting, as part of a British consortium, today announces that the consortium has been appointed by the Saudi Railway Company (SAR) to be its partner, providing management and technical support for infrastructure, freight and passenger operations on one of its rail projects, the North South Railway (NSR). The contract which was signed today 23 February 2015 has a total value to the Consortium of £120m over 5 years.

BBC Tomorrow's World presenter and technology broadcaster and TeenTech founder Maggie Philbin has joined forces with Network Rail to help dispel myths about working in IT and encourage more girls to pursue a tech-related career.

A strong Christmas sales period, coupled with consistent October and November trading has helped Network Rail record positive like-for-like retail sales growth of 6.06% in the final quarter of 2014, the 11th successive quarter or growth. The British Retail Consortium in contrast announced 0.10% growth for the quarter.