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Glossary

Browse the A-Z below for some rail-specific terms that are used in this website, together with their meanings.
 

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C

CAPEX

Capital expenditure: it refers to the funds used by Network Rail to acquire or upgrade physical assets on the railway and related infrastructure in order to maintain or increase the scope of their operations. Such expenditure is referred to as Renewals (of existing infrastructure e.g. works that will provide long term benefits such as replacing a section of track) or Enhancements (upgrading existing or building new infrastructure, e.g. electrification of a railway line).

CaSL

Cancellations and Significant Lateness (CaSL): the proportion of trains which arrive at final destination greater than 30 minutes from planned arrival, or full/part cancelled or missed calls.

CBA

Cost benefit analysis.

CC

Competition Commission.

The CC conducts in-depth inquiries into mergers, markets and the regulation of the major regulated industries, undertaken in response to a reference made to it by another authority.

Change of aspect - NFF

An unintended change of aspect (red, yellow, green) by the signalling system, which when tested, could not be found to be faulty. (No Fault Found.) 

(Signalling systems are designed to ‘fail safe’ with any change always being to a more restrictive aspect, e.g. yellow to red.)

Class representative committee

The committee charged with considering and approving changes to the Network Code under part C of the Network Code.

CMEO

The Railways (Class and miscellaneous exemptions) Order 1994 exempts, among other things, certain named railway assets and categories of railway assets from the licensing provisions of the Railways Act 1993 (as amended).

Control period

A control period is the period to which an access charges review (e.g. a periodic review) applies. Control periods are typically five years in length, but maybe shorter or longer depending on what the regulator decides as part of the review.

CP5 covers from 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2019

CP4 covers from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2014

CP3: 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2009

CP2: 1 April 2001 to 31 March 2004

CP1: from the privatisation of Railtrack to 31 March 2001

Cordon cap

Places an obligation on Network Rail to provide only a certain number of train paths through the cordon (route), even if the TOC has rights that would exceed this limit.

A cordon cap is implemented when the total number of access rights to a path, if used, would exceed the remaining capacity of the network.

COT

Condition of track, usually in the context of requiring a speed restriction.

CPS

Crown Prosecution Service

CTSA

Channel Tunnel Safety Authority.