Length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of was 16,189 Kilometre in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
16,189 Kilometre
Change on year
down 1.5%
World rank
8th
of 49 countries
All-time high
18,989 Kilometre
in 1970
All-time low
15,795 Kilometre
in 2006
Years of data
37
1970–2024
Length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of in United Kingdom, 1970–2024
Source: Eurostat. Measured in Kilometre.
Analysis
In 2024, length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of in United Kingdom stood at 16,189 Kilometre.
That represents a change of down 1.5% on the previous year and down 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of in United Kingdom peaked at 18,989 Kilometre in 1970 and was at its lowest, 15,795 Kilometre, in 2006.
United Kingdom ranks 8th of 49 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 37 years of available data.
Length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | Kilometre | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 18,989 Kilometre | — |
| 1980 | 17,983 Kilometre | -5.3% |
| 1990 | 16,924 Kilometre | -5.9% |
| 1991 | 16,909 Kilometre | -0.1% |
| 1992 | 16,843 Kilometre | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 16,854 Kilometre | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 16,873 Kilometre | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 16,999 Kilometre | +0.7% |
| 1996 | 17,001 Kilometre | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 16,991 Kilometre | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 16,994 Kilometre | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 16,984 Kilometre | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 17,008 Kilometre | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 16,986 Kilometre | -0.1% |
| 2002 | 17,020 Kilometre | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 16,950 Kilometre | -0.4% |
| 2004 | 16,458 Kilometre | -2.9% |
| 2005 | 15,810 Kilometre | -3.9% |
| 2006 | 15,795 Kilometre | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 15,814 Kilometre | +0.1% |
| 2008 | 16,160 Kilometre | +2.2% |
| 2009 | 16,126 Kilometre | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 16,223 Kilometre | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 16,210 Kilometre | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 16,195 Kilometre | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 16,195 Kilometre | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 16,202 Kilometre | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 16,241 Kilometre | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 16,253 Kilometre | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 16,320 Kilometre | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 16,289 Kilometre | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 16,480 Kilometre | +1.2% |
| 2020 | 16,519 Kilometre | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 16,457 Kilometre | -0.4% |
| 2022 | 16,430 Kilometre | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 16,433 Kilometre | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 16,189 Kilometre | -1.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 18,989 Kilometre | 18,989 Kilometre | 18,989 Kilometre | 1 |
| 1980s | 17,983 Kilometre | 17,983 Kilometre | 17,983 Kilometre | 1 |
| 1990s | 16,937 Kilometre | 16,843 Kilometre | 17,001 Kilometre | 10 |
| 2000s | 16,413 Kilometre | 15,795 Kilometre | 17,020 Kilometre | 10 |
| 2010s | 16,261 Kilometre | 16,195 Kilometre | 16,480 Kilometre | 10 |
| 2020s | 16,406 Kilometre | 16,189 Kilometre | 16,519 Kilometre | 5 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More reference data data for United Kingdom
- Cooling and heating degree days by NUTS 2 regions - annual data 2,710 Number (2025)
- Cooling and heating degree days by NUTS 2 regions - monthly data 358.44 Number (2025)
- R&D personnel by sector of performance and region — R&D Personnel 739,816 Persons (2017)
- Victims in road accidents by NUTS 2 region 1,860 Number (2016)
- Stock of vehicles by category and NUTS 2 region 36.71 million Number (2018)
- Deaths (total) by NUTS 3 region 614,313 Number (2018)
- Establishments, bedrooms and bed-places in tourist accommodation, by 84,580 Number (2016)
- Deaths by age, sex and NUTS 2 region 614,313 Number (2018)
- Life table by age, sex and NUTS 2 region 0.0037 (2018)
- Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments by NUTS 2 region 122.04 million Number (2016)
Frequently asked questions
- What is length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of in United Kingdom?
- Length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of in United Kingdom was 16,189 Kilometre in 2024, according to Eurostat.
- What is the highest length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 18,989 Kilometre in 1970.
- What is the lowest length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 15,795 Kilometre in 2006.
- How does United Kingdom rank for length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of?
- United Kingdom ranks 8th out of 49 countries with data for 2024.
- Is length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Eurostat, published as part of Length of railway lines by number of tracks and electrification of lines. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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