Network Rail has announced the start of its five-year £4.8 billion investment plan for Scotland.

Between April 2024 and March 2029, the money will be invested across the country “to improve punctuality, reduce delays and make Scotland’s Railway more resilient in the face of our changing weather.”

Network Rail said the plan announced includes:

• Over £2bn of investment in renewing key infrastructure
• Over £1bn of investment in maintaining Scotland’s Railway
• Increased investment in drainage systems and more drainage engineers
• Continued investment in new technology to help monitor the impact of extreme weather
• Installation of more remote monitoring equipment to give early warning of potential issues
• Dedicated plans for taking climate action and reducing the railway’s carbon footprint
• Ambitious plans to reduce costs across Scotland’s railway by adopting new ways of working

Alex Hynes, managing director of Scotland’s Railway, said: “The plan we have announced today will help us deliver a safe and reliable railway for our customers and one which supports the social and economic growth of the communities we serve.

“Over the next five years we will continue to invest in renewing and maintaining our infrastructure while also making it more resilient to Scotland’s changing weather.

“We will also work closely with our industry partners and government to ensure we deliver a value for money railway for the taxpayers who fund us while improving the service we offer to passengers and freight customers.”