Railtrack PLC replaced by Network Rail

Railtrack PLC, the privatised rail infrastructure company was placed in administration on 7 October 2001. Railtrack was sold for £1,904m in 1996 preceded by a £869m net debt write-off. The shares were priced at 390p, almost doubled in price within a year and by 1999 were over 1,600p valuing the company at £8bn, four times its original sale price (Whitfield, 2001). Network Rail is a non-profit company limited by guarantee. It operates commercially but any surplus is reinvested in the railways it owns and maintains the tracks, signals, bridges and 2,500 stations.