HS2 worthwhile but what the Black Country needs is better roads says chamber president

IMPROVEMENTS to UK rail infrastructure are important and worthwhile but what will be of more long-term benefit to firms in the Black Country is a better road system, the president of the area’s chamber of commerce has said.

Commenting on the launch of the HS3 high speed rail proposals in Leeds, Ninder Johal said the Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer and HS2 chief Sir David Higgins had all done an inspiring job developing and supporting a new opportunity to revive the economy of in the north.

However, he said there were a different set of priorities in the Black Country, where the industrial make-up was slightly different.

“Black Country manufacturing is dominated by small niche businesses who can turn around specialist requirements very quickly and to a very high standard. HS2 probably means less for them than a good local road network does. 90% of freight travels by road and we need better investment in the local road network alongside the vital motorway system,” he said.

He said the Midlands Connect group had the opportunity to lobby for transport improvements in the East-West corridor.

“We have the opportunity to lead and inspire. We want Midlands Connect to be every bit as influential as Transport for the North. We need our local authorities, LEP and business leaders to take the opportunity for devolved powers to drive a radical agenda for change,” he added.

“The Black Country Chamber is leading the way in showing how its local economy can be doubled over 10 years. We expect all the Midlands chambers to work together to assure that we get the right levels of investment and the responsibility to drive strategic growth.

“We know that London gets 10-times the investment in transport per head than areas like the Black Country. There is no reason why we cannot enjoy similar levels of contribution, provided we can deliver the economic case to grow significantly. We are all responsible for finding ways to rebalance this economy and we need investment to drive economic growth.”