Railtrack bosses today waived their bonuses as the beleaguered company plunged £534 million into the red after incurring huge costs following the Hatfield train crash.

But Railtrack did say it was paying shareholders - likely to include many senior company figures - a final dividend of 17.15p.

Together with the interim dividend of 9.75p paid out last November, the pay-out takes the total dividend to 26.9p - the same as the 1999-2000 figure.

The money will be paid out despite the profits plunge caused when the £199 million Railtrack made last year was hit by exceptional items.

The principal expense was the post-Hatfield recovery programme - of £733 million in the 12 months ending March 2001.

"The last six months has been a humbling experience for everyone at Railtrack," said the company's chief executive Steve Marshall.

Mr Marshall said: "The results of the last 18 months have resulted in a loss of confidence in Railtrack and the railways. The task facing Railtrack is to deliver a reliable and safe rail network that meets the demands of its customers, the travelling public and its funders."

A broken rail was the initial cause of the Hatfield crash which claimed four lives in October 2000 and some senior staff may have an anxious summer waiting to hear if charges will be brought over the incident.

Passengers and train companies faced months of delays afterwards as Railtrack imposed hundreds of speed limits as it checked thousands of miles of track.

The recovery project has been the most intensive programme of rail renewal seen on Britain's rail system in the last 50 years, with almost 500 miles of track and 1,100 points replaced.

One Railtrack insider, based in the York-based London North Eastern zone, said morale among staff has been better. "The only way is up," he told the Evening Press. "The Hatfield incident came as a short, sharp shock. We need to spend more time tarting up the nuts and bolts of the railway and less trying to make money through commercial developments at station."

* Problems on the railways resulted in soaring passenger numbers at UK airports last year, official figures out today revealed. UK airports handled 180 million passengers in 2000, a rise of seven per cent on 1999, with numbers particularly increasing during the height of the post-Hatfield rail crash crisis.

Updated: 10:50 Thursday, May 24, 2001