Preston joins Liverpool in HS2 quest

BUSINESS leaders in Preston are calling for a rethink on plans for High Speed rail links with London.

Mirroring the concerns of counterparts in Liverpool – where an indepedent campign group called  20 Miles More – has already been created,  the head of North and Western Lancashire Chamber of Commerce, says the whole of the region, not just Manchester, should benefit from the proposed rail link.

This week transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin pledged that HS2 will go ahead, with work on phase one, the connection between Birmingham and London beginning in in 2017, with the ‘Y network’ – the lines to Leeds and Manchester – following soon after.

Babs Murphy, chief executive of the chamber said: “I would ask the Government to reconsider its decision to end the line at Manchester and bring it into Lancashire.

“We have waited a long time for developments on HS2 and while it is good news the Government plans to finally get going on it, it would be even better for Lancashire if the county was to benefit more directly.

“The North West of England however does not stop at Manchester. Extending the line to Preston would provide a greater connectivity not just to Lancashire but to Cumbria, Scotland and the whole of the North West.”