OREANDA-NEWS. August 08, 2016. Becky will join Network Rail on 1 November from Shell/BG where she is currently managing director of Dragon LNG, one of the major gas import terminals in the UK. She replaces John Halsall whose move to the organisation’s South East route was announced last month.

Becky has over 20 years’ experience working in the energy industry, living and working internationally on four continents, delivering major infrastructure projects and managing complex oil and gas operations. She will work closely with South West Trains, which operates the main rail franchise on the Wessex route.

Phil Hufton, managing director, England & Wales, said: “I am pleased to welcome Becky to Network Rail. She has worked in a wide variety of senior leadership roles and served as a board director on several joint venture companies, including in the Middle East and the Americas. Her strong commercial background and the transferable skills she brings from her experience in the energy industry will be invaluable on this busy route.”

About Network Rail

Network Rail owns, manages and develops Britain's railway - the 20,000 miles of track, 40,000 bridges and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations (the largest of which we also run). In partnership with train operators we help people take more than 1.65bn journeys by rail every year and move hundreds of millions of tonnes of freight, saving almost 8m lorry journeys. We employ 36,000 people across Britain and work round-the-clock, each and every day, to provide a safe, reliable railway.

About the Railway Upgrade Plan

The Railway Upgrade Plan is Network Rail's investment plan for Britain's railways. It makes up two-thirds of Network Rail's ?40bn spending priorities for the five years to 2019 and represents the biggest sustained programme of rail modernisation since the Victoria era. It is designed to provide more capacity, relieve crowding and respond to the tremendous growth Britain's railways continue to experience; passenger numbers have doubled in the past 20 years and are set to double again over the next 25 years - so we need to continue to invest in building a bigger, better railway. For passengers, that means:

  • longer, faster more frequent trains;
  • better, more reliable infrastructure; and
  • better facilities for passengers, especially at stations.