R A I LT R AC K - The Railways Archive

executive summary
This Statement
sets out an industry
vision of a rail
renaissance for
Britain’s railways
6
Our 1999 Network Management Statement occurs at a defining moment for the industry. It
represents the rail industry’s response to the Government’s Integrated Transport Policy White
Paper and sets out an industry vision for a rail renaissance based on an expanding railway
meeting the needs of a growing number of passengers and businesses.The plan will contribute
towards the Government’s policy of sustainable development with reduced dependence on
road transport delivering a transport system that is safe, efficient, clean and fair. Rail is
particularly well-suited to this role. We demonstrate that, in environmental terms, increased
use of rail can confer substantial benefits in respect of lower vehicle emissions, congestion and
safety. To deliver the Plan, we also propose a new incentives framework to enable and
encourage the necessary investment.
Against this background, the 1999 NMS:
• sets out plans to accommodate a 30% growth in passenger demand over the next ten
years and a trebling of freight volumes.
• tackles 30 capacity bottlenecks – with work already under way on 11.
• commits to a number of major enhancements including an upgrade of the East Coast
Main Line between London,Yorkshire and Edinburgh.
• includes proposals for improved rail access to and through central London together with
new and improved rail connections to Heathrow and Stansted airports.
• sets out proposals for improving facilities across all our 2,500 stations, including better
access to the network for the disabled.
• proposes increased access to the network for larger freight containers and the
development of a third Anglo-Scottish freight corridor.
• sets out in Route Strategies a range of detailed proposals for improving the capability
and capacity of the network.
• commits Railtrack to further improvements in network reliability.
Our plans involve total investment of some £27bn over the next ten years – some of which
will need to be carried out in partnership with funders.This compares with the total
planned investment of £17bn in the 1998 NMS.