£35bn West Coast rail link proposed
NETWORK Rail has unveiled a blueprint for a West Coast high speed rail link, which would slash journey times to London from Manchester and Liverpool.
The proposed development, which would require £34bn of investment, would see journey times to the North West fall from over two hours to around one hour six minutes to Manchester and Warrington, one hour 23 minutes to Liverpool and an hour and 13 minutes to Preston.
The new line would become only the UK’s second high speed route, following the Channel Tunnel link.
Iain Coucher, Network Rail’s chief executive said: “High-speed rail can transform Britain. It can promote economic growth, regeneration and social inclusion. It is a low carbon option – cutting domestic flights and taking cars and lorries off the road. It will release capacity on the existing rail network and revolutionise passenger journeys.”
“Demand for rail travel is growing and our main lines from the north to London are nearly full.
“By 2020 we will be turning away passengers – that’s not what we want. We need to start the planning now to meet future demand and the solution is a new high-speed railway to the Midlands, the North West and Scotland. The line has a sound business case that will pay for itself.”
Richard Critchley, policy manager for transport at Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, heralded the announcement as “excellent news”
.
He said: “Our local economy relies on strong connections and fast, reliable services to other cities and in particular London.
“Today’s announcement paves the way for a revolution in journey speeds bringing Greater Manchester closer to key markets, with predictions that productivity benefits alone could be worth tens of billions to the national economy.
“Our primary concern now is to ensure that the Government commits funding to enable this development to happen. With the current state of Government finances, it is unclear how any major infrastructure works will be delivered.”
David Grundy, managing partner at Grant Thornton, in Manchester, said: “The North West already has a thriving business community, and anything that allows us to do business more easily must be a good thing.
“Whilst this proposal must be seen positively it needs to be viewed in the broader context and not just about connecting London to the North West.
“For example, efforts need to be made to connect the region to the Eurostar/Channel Tunnel infrastructure, and there is need to invest in intra-regional transport. Rail links between Liverpool and Manchester, and across the pennines, are underinvested and a more holistic approach is required.
“There has been a lot of talk over many years about such plans but what is needed is real action and commitment rather than just grand ideas.”
