Network Rail has announced pre-tax profits of over £1 billion in its latest financial results.

The organisation says record levels of investment are now being made in the country's rail network, with more than £7 billion spent on expanding and improving infrastructure over the past 12 months.

According to Network Rail, the number of people using the network grew by 86 million in the past year, meaning passenger numbers have now doubled since 1995. A further 30 per cent growth is predicted over the next ten years.

Chief executive Mark Carne said: "We are in the middle of a rail renaissance, with record levels of passenger numbers and record levels of investment."

However, the company said it missed its regulatory target for punctuality, with 90 per cent of trains running on time - short of the goal by 2.5 percentage points. This was partly due to congestion but extreme weather and slower improvements in asset reliability also played a role.