Network Rail awards £136m management contract to Hitachi Capital

Network Rail has awarded a £136m contract to Hitachi Capital to provide integrated road fleet management services.

The four-year contract will run from 1 August 2019 to 31 July 2023, with the option of a one-year extension. It marks a new way of working for Network Rail, with the supplier overseeing the management of the organisation’s entire owned and leased road fleet, as well as sourcing and supplying lease vehicles.

With this contract, Network Rail is moving away from managing 16 separate road fleet contracts directly to a more efficient and cost-effective ‘one-stop shop’ solution provided by Hitachi Capital. It also sees Network Rail’s road fleet transitioning from an owned to a leased model.

The new integrated fleet management contract supports local decision-making by providing full visibility of information through one system across the company and promoting the use of local supply chains, with suppliers mapped to the route geography.

Service, maintenance and repair of all road fleet vehicles will be scheduled as part of the contract, which also includes driver training, vehicle compliance, vehicle insurance and claims management and end-of-life vehicle management among other services.

Rob Morton, supply chain operations director for Network Rail, said: “This deal marks a turning point for our road fleet. We have one of the largest fleets in Britain and need to manage it accordingly. Working in partnership with Hitachi Capital, we will focus on providing the professional service that our drivers deserve, tailored to meet their individual needs. This will also include urgent replacement of older vehicles and using many local suppliers across Britain, sharing the benefit with regional economies.”

Willie Crawford, head of road fleet for Network Rail, said: “This is a significant change for Network Rail, which will provide the platform for us to more effectively manage our road vehicle fleet across Britain and is tailored to our unique requirements.”

About Network Rail

Network Rail own, operate and develop Britain’s railway infrastructure; that’s 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We manage 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are managed by the country’s train operating companies.