A record £4.1 billion was spent on enhancing Britain’s railways last year — an all-time high — according to Network Rail’s annual report published earlier this month.

The report highlights the progress being made and the thousands of projects that have been completed or are nearing completion.

The report said: “In 2017/18, we had a continued focus on transforming Network Rail (www.networkrail.co.uk) into a more customer-focused cost-competitive organisation.

”The benefits of devolution are being realised, as the new structure with nine distinct businesses beds in, resulting in more decisions being made at a local level. Route performance targets are now developed with train operating companies, and there are now six ‘route supervisory boards’.”

Recent highlights include: the January delivery — on time and on budget — of the newly rebuilt London Bridge station; and the November completion of the £85 million Ordsall Chord project connecting Manchester’s main rail stations for the first time.

A number of other stations across the country were opened or significantly upgraded during the year, including Cambridge North, Ilkeston, Kenilworth, Maghull North, and Low Moor (Bradford).

The report also says that the massive investment in Britain’s railways has seen Network Rail’s debt rise as planned (it is now £51.3 billion compared to £46.3 billion in 2016/2017), adding that this approach will be changed for the next five-year funding period (2019 to 2024 and called CP6), with investment projects being fully funded by grant and/or third-party investment.

Profit before tax was lower this financial year (£48 million compared to £483 million last time) in line with expectations set out for the final years of the ‘CP5 regulatory settlement’.

Jeremy Westlake, chief financial officer, said: “Britain’s railways are a vital economic driver for our country, helping to create employment and stimulate growth and housing by connecting people to jobs, friends and family, but they are congested.

The huge investment encapsulated in our railway upgrade plan — the biggest investment programme in the railways since Victorian times — is vital to provide more capacity for services that are coming on stream now and will continue to do so over the coming months and years.”