Ministers have abandoned their target for expanding the railways.

A pledge to increase rail travel by 50 per cent by 2010 has been withdrawn after the government realised it had no hope of achieving it.
 
Alistair Darling, the transport secretary, has chosen instead to focus on reliability and punctuality.

He will today publish a white paper on the railways which will outline plans to abolish the Strategic Rail Authority — created by John Prescott, the deputy prime minister, three years ago — and hand its powers to Network Rail and the government.