Network Rail (NR) has come under fire for the way its staff inspect tracks, find defects and schedule repairs.

An official report obtained by BBC Radio 4's File On 4 programme detail shortages, fatigue, 'overstretch' and time pressure among workers and supervisors. Rail regulators say NR has until 31 March to improve its track inspection arrangements.

The unpublished report was compiled by inspectors from Her Majesty's Rail Inspectorate, who visited 28 areas and maintenance depots from Scotland to the south of England to investigate methods and systems of patrolling the tracks following the Grayrigg crash in Cumbria.

The initiative is timely as one woman died and 89 people were hurt when a Virgin train was derailed last February.

The inspectors say overall track patrolling is carried out by competent and experienced staff and is given a high priority by all involved in the process.

However the investigators highlighted a number of problems some of which included numerous track inspection defects going undetected, patrols being missed or carried out by staff who do not know the tracks they are inspecting and little evidence that patrollers' performance are being monitored by supervisors or managers.

Office of Rail Regulation Chairman Chris Bolt said: "We need to make sure that the patrolling... allows Network Rail to identify defects before they become a safety risk and to deal with them.

"We have not been satisfied as yet that their procedures are achieving that objective," he said.

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