Network Rail is facing its second huge fine in a matter of months because of the delays it has inflicted on passengers in the Thames Valley , West Country and South Wales (link below.)
http://www.rmtbristol.org.uk/2007/08/network_rail_braced_for_second.html#more

Rail regulators , who last month hit the company with a £2.4m penalty for failing to complete a signalling scheme on time , are ready to act again.

This time the fine could be far higher as it involves delays on one of the country's key routes - the line linking Paddington and South Wales.

The move comes within weeks of Network Rail being carpeted over its performance by the Government. Tom Harris called in senior executives to demand an explanation why punctuality is worsening after Network Rail's promises to improve it.

Chris Bolt , the chairman of the Office of Rail Regulation , told The Daily Telegraph that after years of improvement Network Rail's performance has stalled. In some parts of the country , notably the Thames Valley , West Country and South Wales , delays due to poor signalling and infrastructure have got worse. "Performance on the western route has been particularly poor," Mr Bolt said.

Some of the difficulties are down to the train operator , First Great Western , but many were the fault of Network Rail.

"We took enforcement action against Network Rail in Portsmouth," said Mr Bolt , referring to the £2.4m fine. "If we see Network Rail failing to deliver again, we will consider enforcement action again."

The latest punctuality statistics are embarrassing for both the Government and train operators as they come at a time when they are under pressure from passengers over both overcrowding and fares.

The latest figures , which do not include July when parts of the network were flooded , show passengers faced 650,000 minutes of delays over the previous 12 months - the equivalent of 30 seconds on every journey a rail passenger takes. Six months ago the figure was 600,000 minutes.

I was just thinking the same things.  The whole point of Railtrack being taken 'back' by the Government and converted to non-profitmaking Network Rail was to improve reliability, safety and other important maintenance and upgrades to track.  This system of fines seems to me ridiculous, it feeds an iniquitous internal economy and pleases no one but bean-counters.

There has to be a better way of getting Network Rail to do its job properly.