Network Rail Limited Annual report and accounts 2014 Delivering a better railway for a better Britain Network Rail Limited Annual report and accounts 2014 About us We are the not for dividend owner and operator of Britain’s railway infrastructure, which includes the tracks, signals, tunnels, bridges, viaducts, level crossings and stations – the largest of which we also manage. We aim to provide a safe, reliable and efficient rail infrastructure for freight and passenger trains. Our highlights during the year Our railway is more popular than ever, with We exceed our level crossing Extreme flooding in Dawlish passenger numbers increasing at a faster closure target Severe storms, torrential rainfall rate than expected. This alone has put a We closed 804 level crossings, exceeding and strong winds in early 2014 disrupted strain on our assets, and combined with the our target of closing 750, 10 per cent our network, including 100 metres of sea wettest winter for almost 250 years, has of Britain’s crossings, by April 2014. wall destroyed in Devon. Our 300-strong required increasing our efforts to deliver, The closure of level crossings has been ‘orange army’ battled for over two months particularly with regards to operational supported by a programme of other works to restore services so people could reach performance. Whilst we have failed to including Rail Life – a national schools their destinations in Devon and Cornwall meet some of the targets set for CP4, campaign and investment in technology. in time for Easter. our people have delivered some tangible results during the year – which we are proud to share. Rail line at Hatfield and 75 per cent of our CP5 Promoting women Stainforth reopens contracts let in rail We completed one of the most complex We awarded contracts through which we We continue to promote our entry-level recovery operations following a spoil heap will undertake 75 per cent of our £4.2bn programmes to women. We launched slip at Hatfield Colliery. Engineers relocated infrastructure renewals and enhancements our ‘Could IT be you?’ competition, to approximately one million cubic metres of as part of our CP5 delivery plan. This will inspire young women to consider a career material and reinstated four tracks, including not only enhance the railway and meet in infrastructure technology and joined switches and crossings and associated future demand but will also support and Women in Rail to provide mentoring support signalling and power supplies. generate economic growth across Britain. for women working in the rail industry. Record-breaking festive rail King’s Cross Square opens Plain line pattern recognition (PLPR) investment programme The 75,000 sq ft King’s Cross Square We deployed PLPR on the network. At more than £100m, we successfully opened as the final part of the £550m High definition, laser technology and thermal completed the biggest ever investment redevelopment of King’s Cross station. cameras were affixed to specialist trains, to programme over Christmas and New Year. find faults on the track, so we can now spend Hundreds of our engineers and contractors time fixing them, rather than having to find worked the equivalent of more than 600,000 them in the first place. hours at over 100 locations across Britain. Control periods are the five-year time periods which we receive funding for, and the outputs we must deliver, as agreed with the Government. Control Period 4 (CP4) ran from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2014. Control Period 5 (CP5) runs from 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2019. Cover images 1. Five new platforms at Reading station, 4. The renovated Victorian structure a new footbridge and escalators, and at King’s Cross station and the new 1 2 lifts for step-free access to all platforms 75,000 sq ft King’s Cross Square 2. Apprentices at our training centre 5. Following the winter storm damage our 3 4 in Gosport ‘orange army’ of workers celebrate the Delivering a better railway reopening of the Dawlish railway after two for a better Britain Network Rail Limited 3. Electrifying key rail routes across Annual report and accounts 2014 months of round-the-clock restoration work 5 the North will mean faster, quieter 6 and more comfortable journeys 6. Winter storms batter the sea wall at Dawlish Contents Strategic report 01 Our performance 02 What we do 04 Chairman’s statement 06 Chief executive’s review 10 Our journey through CP4 12 What we want to be 14 How we will get there: our operating environment 16 How we will get there: our strategic themes 21 Our business model 24 Our approach to safety Our performance 26 Our approach to risk management In this report, we have outlined our performance during 30 How we performed 32 Customer satisfaction on our routes the year (the final year of CP4) and the challenges and 33 Asset Management plans we have for delivering a better railway for a better 34 Network Operations 36 Infrastructure Projects Britain over the next five years. 37 Property 38 The improvements we delivered through the year 40 Group finance director’s review 45 How we act responsibly £6,197m £6,333m Corporate governance 48 Board of directors £2,580m £2,811m 51 Corporate governance report 69 Directors’ remuneration report 93 Directors’ report 2013 2014 2013 2014 Financial statements and notes 96 Independent auditors’ report £6,333m £2, 811m 102 Consolidated financial statements Revenue in the year Operating costs 107 Consolidated financial £6,197m in 2013 £2,580m in 2013 notes £1,256m £33.0bn Profit after tax Net debt £699m in 2013 £30.4bn in 2013 £6,873m £5,050m 90.9% 90.0% 2013 2014 2013 2014 £6,873m 90.0% Capital expenditure Passenger trains on time £5,050m in 2013 90.9 per cent in 2013 Annual report and accounts 2014 01 What we do We work with operators and supply chain partners on managing assets, timetables and investments for the benefit of passengers, freight users and tax payers. Our key businesses supporting this are – Asset Management, Network Operations, Infrastructure Projects and Property. Asset Management Network Operations Infrastructure Projects Property Our contribution to rail Our contribution to rail Our contribution to rail Our contribution to rail The tracks, bridges, tunnels, embankments, We are responsible for the safe running of We are one of the largest delivery We are the largest small business signals and stations are the assets that the railway every day, including timetabling, businesses in the country. We deliver landlord in the UK with a national make up the railway network. access, signalling, maintenance and local infrastructure renewals and enhancements. portfolio of over 7,400 properties. We manage these in the smartest way we can by setting asset asset management. Our investment plan involves thousands of projects around the Our activities create attractive and welcoming station policies and providing assurance to the business around their The function is ‘devolved’ – split into routes which own and country aimed at delivering a bigger, better railway and enabling environments, provide business space for companies to succeed whole-life management. manage business relationships with our customers (the train and more trains to run at higher speeds with more seats and better and drive the sustainable regeneration of railway land. facilities at stations up and down the country. We also deliver long-term research, technology and innovation freight operators) and other external commercial stakeholders. We are constantly seeking new ways of generating income from projects and provide essential asset information, telecoms and Being a devolved function enables us to work more closely with To support this delivery and enhance our aim of becoming more our assets – with every extra pound of income generated going energy services to our business and external customers. operators and deliver real improvements in safety, service, delivery market competitive, the function is split into regions which are towards reducing the cost of the railway to the taxpayer. and efficiency. responsible for major renewal and enhancement infrastructure in their relevant areas. 2014 in action 2014 in action 2014 in action 2014 in action Latest technology Cutting edge signalling centres Edinburgh to Glasgow Improvement Programme Bringing private investment to the railway Our fleet of 26 tilting wagons have decks that can tilt around 60 We are running longer, more frequent and faster passenger Redeveloping Glasgow Queen Street, Scotland’s third busiest Solum Regeneration is a partnership between Network Rail degrees upwards. This means we can carry bulky pre-assembled and freight trains than ever before, using the most advanced station with 20 million passengers a year, is part of the Edinburgh and Kier Property formed to attract private investment to parts of our infrastructure, such as switches and crossing units, or technologies and methods. Each signalling centre covers a large to Glasgow Improvement Programme which will deliver a rolling the railway. It drives value for the travelling public through sections of track direct to site without dismantling them for travel so area with great precision and control to manage the network programme of electrification across the Central Belt over the station-led developments which generate funding for station track is replaced quickly and efficiently with minimum disruption. safely and efficiently. next five years and beyond. This programme will reduce journey and environmental improvements. times and boost capacity on key routes. 12 state-of-the-art rail operating centres with advanced signalling Solum has delivered projects at Epsom and Christchurch, is on site tools and technology will eventually control large parts of at Walthamstow and has further projects in the pipeline at Redhill the railway replacing more than 800 signal boxes and other and Haywards Heath.