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Transport - Network Rail

Huge bonuses paid to bosses of the failing rail network triggered outrage. Four senior figures from newly created Network Rail each picked up £700,000-plus pay packages in the last financial year. Their total bonuses, on top of salaries and other perks, added up to more than £1.5million. Astonishingly, two of the four got "retention" payments for helping Network Rail take over from collapsed Railtrack - then collected £300,000 pay-offs. Unions, passengers and the widow of a Potters Bar crash victim were furious at the figures from Network Rail's annual report.

They came as nearly 20 per cent of trains continue to run late and companies prepare to bring in big fare rises. In the year to April 2003, Network Rail chief executive John Armitt banked £761,000, including a £225,000 bonus for handling the Railtrack switch. Technical director Richard Middleton was paid £716,000, including a £150,000 retention bonus for initially agreeing to stay with the business and £300,000 when he later left.

Chris Leah, director of safety, got £872,000. Part of that was £450,000 of bonuses for staying after Railtrack went into administration. Financial director Sebastian Bull' package was £762,000, partly thanks to £150,000 retention money and a £300,000 pay-off when he moved on. Salaries and other fees made up the overall deals, which added up to £3million-plus.

Richard Rosser, head of the TSSA rail staff union, said, "It is time someone put a stop to the gravy train - which, for the privileged few, seems to just keep rolling on and on." Mick Rix, of train drivers' union Aslef, said, "Now that Network Rail is a not-for- profit company, the Government should ensure that it shakes off the worst excesses of the privatised culture." RMT leader Bob Crow said, "This is classic double standards. I dread to think how big bonuses would be if they actually hit targets."

Caroline Jones, of the Rail Passengers' Council, said travellers would be "aghast". Author Nina Bawden, whose husband Austen Kark died at Potters Bar, said, "If I was a director, I'd be ashamed to be picking up a fat cheque while victims are still suffering." Network Rail said the payouts were agreed between bosses and accountants Ernst & Young, Railtrack's administrators. Ernst & Young had sought to secure "continuity of management" of the company.

There was "potential for a clean break for either party" at the end of administration. There were no performance bonuses because the firm failed to meet its target of 83 per cent punctuality. A new scheme means directors could get another £1million, 60 per cent of salary, if they hit this year's goals. Chairman Ian McAllister said, "Directors will benefit if passengers benefit." The annual report also discloses that £1.3million was paid to French bank Societe Generale for seven months' work by its deputy chairman.

Network Rail imposed limits on many of Britain's busiest lines, amid fears of rails buckling in temperatures of up to 33C. It meant journey delays of up to an hour for commuters trying to get home. The speed restrictions will gradually be lifted as temperatures cool throughout the evening, but will then be imposed again as they rise in the coming days. The limit has brought trains which normally travel at up to 110 miles an hour, down to 60. The West Coast mainline and the Cross Country network were among the hardest hit by the restrictions, with some of the long distance services halved to just one an hour.

There were reports of chaotic scenes at Birmingham New Street, where half the trains to London were cancelled and Virgin passengers facing average delays of 45 to 60 minutes. Central Trains cancelled some services altogether, replacing them with buses. Steve Hounsham of Transport 2000 questioned why the rail network could not cope with "what is, after all, a relatively mild climate". But Caroline Jones, a spokeswoman for the Rail Passengers Council, said Network Rail could not be criticised for such a safety move - so long as it did its best to inform passengers.

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