Spot-hire

Great Britain
A Deutsche Bahn train at Leamington Spa hauled by a Class 67, under DB Cargo UK, with Mark 3 carriages in Chiltern Railways livery.
Operation
Major operators	National Rail franchises
Statistics
Ridership	1.718 billion (2015/16)
Passenger km	64.7 km (40.2 mi) billion (2015/16)
System length
Total	15,799 km (9,817 mi)
Electrified	5,331 km (3,313 mi)
Features
No. stations	2563
Map

Map

The railway system in Great Britain is the oldest in the world. Wagonways were built in Britain in the 1560s and soon spread across the country. The first locomotive-hauled public railway opened in 1825. Most of the railway track is managed by Network Rail, which in 2016 had a network of 15,799 kilometres (9,817 mi) of standard-gauge lines, of which 5,331 kilometres (3,313 mi) were electrified. These lines range from single to quadruple track or more. In addition, some cities have separate rail-based mass transit systems (including the extensive and historic London Underground). There are also several private railways (some of them narrow-gauge), which are primarily short tourist lines. The British railway network is connected with that of continental Europe by an undersea rail link, the Channel Tunnel, opened in 1994.

The United Kingdom is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC Country Code for United Kingdom is 70. The UK has the 17th largest railway network in the world; despite many lines having closed in the 20th century it remains one of the densest rail networks. It is one of the busiest railways in Europe, with 20% more train services than France, 60% more than Italy, and more than Spain, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Portugal and Norway combined, as well as representing more than 20% of all passenger journeys in Europe.

In 2016, there were 1.718 billion journeys on the National Rail network, making the British network the fifth most used in the world (Great Britain ranks 23rd in world population). Unlike a number of other countries, rail travel in the United Kingdom has enjoyed a renaissance in recent years, with passenger numbers reaching their highest ever level (see usage figures below). This has coincided with the privatisation of British Rail, but the effect of this is disputed. The growth is partly attributed to a shift away from private motoring due to growing road congestion and increasing petrol prices, but also to the overall increase in travel due to affluence. However passenger journeys have grown much more quickly than in comparable countries such as France and Germany.