New trains help to take private spending on railways to £503m
SPENDING on new trains has pushed private investment in the UK rail system up 35 per cent in the last financial year, figures from the Office of Rail Regulation showed yesterday.
This helped to take total spending to £503m, the highest level of investment since 2006/7.
Private firms spent £369m on rolling stock during the year, the ORR said, up from £274m a year ago.
In 2011, deals for extra rolling stock were reached with Northern Rail, First Great Western, London Midland, Virgin West Coast, South West Trains and Southern.
Around £33m was spent on station improvements, while other costs including non-rail vehicles and IT expenses totalled £99m.