Annual Report and Accounts 2011: Efficiency

Costs

We reduced the running costs of the railway by over £400m in the year, and around £600m since the start of this regulatory period in 2009.

Cashflow

We generated £2.5bn cash from operations – all of which is invested straight back into the railway.
 

Borrowing

The level of borrowing in comparison to the value the regulator puts on our assets has fallen to 63.4per cent from 63.9 per cent last year.

Safety on the railway is everyone’s responsibility, with Network Rail and our managers directly accountable. We will not compromise on safety, it remains our number one consideration in everything we do.

Train performance was badly affected by the severe weather during November and December 2010. However better planning and rephasing of work resulted in less disruption of the rail network.

Half way through the five-year Control Period 4 we continue to reduce running costs and remain on target to achieve the challenging efficiency savings that we first set out as part of our CP4 Delivery Plan in 2009.

As we create a new devolved regional structure, we are empowering our people to work more directly with our train and freight operating customers, delivering a seven day railway at the same time as a huge capital upgrade and renewals programme.

We will continue to deliver our commitments under Control Period 4 enabling more trains to run on the network, improving punctuality further and making the railway safer.  At the same time we will find ways of doing business better, faster and at a lower cost to meet the demands of CP5.