Looking after the railway
We work 24/7 to keep the rail network running
Running the safest railway in Europe is a team effort. The day-to-day operations and maintenance we carry out to keep Britain moving involves dedicated teams across the country, working collaboratively and ensuring we maintain the best possible service for the millions who rely on the railway, every day.
Responsibilities
We’re responsible for:
- More than 20,000 miles of track across England, Scotland and Wales.
- Almost 6,000 level crossings – with consistently fewer accidents than in countries with a similar number.
- 30,000 bridges and viaducts.
- Around 2,500 stations – including 20 that we run: the biggest and busiest in the country.
Operations
Our operational function ensures the railway’s safe performance. We manage the systems and processes that keep the rail network working. Our team includes signalling operators in regional rail operating centres, mobile operations managers, incident response teams that reopen blocked parts of the network, level crossing managers, and station customer service teams.
Our operational readiness hub is the national operations centre, and it’s organised around our routes to meet the needs of our customers: passengers, passenger service and freight operators and external commercial stakeholders.
Maintenance
Maintenance is the day-to-day upkeep of the network. Our maintenance employees help our operations and project teams. They ensure all parts of our infrastructure are maintained and working well. This includes signals and power supplies, and assets like tracks and bridges, are maintained and working well.
Week on the Network
There’s always something happening on the railway. Our Week on the Network series keeps you right up to date with everything we’re doing, every seven days. Be sure to subscribe on YouTube and never miss an episode!
Related pages
Bridges, tunnels and viaducts
Track
Signalling
Our fleet: machines and vehicles
Level crossings
Earthworks: cutting slopes and embankments
Asset Protection and Optimisation
Asset management
Recommended stories
What’s the National Operations Centre and how does it help passengers?
What’s on a freight train?
