Government to revisit decision to snub Yorkshire rail upgrades
The Department for Transport (DfT) is to reassess evidence for improving rail connectivity in Bradford, and study options for bringing HS2 to Leeds, including better connectivity with Sheffield.
The DfT was responding to the Transport Committee’s second report on the The Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) for the North and Midlands, which says alternative options that could transform stations and city centres in key northern cities, have not been properly tested.
The omission of plans for a new line and station serving Bradford from the 2021 IRP provoked ire, with the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, Northern Powerhouse and MPs lobbying for the plan to be revised.
The DfT now says it will will publish the terms of reference of a new study on bringing HS2 to Leeds before the summer recess. The study is expected to take 18 months.
And while the DfT says it stands by the IRP’s conclusion on Bradford, it accepts the Transport Committees recommendation, and “in light of this recommendation, a re-assessment of the evidence for better connecting Bradford and the case for a new station will now form part of the NPR development programme and the HS2 to Leeds Study, with any options that may be taken forward to be funded through the IRP’s £96bn envelope.
“The second phase of Bradford master planning work agreed as part of the West Yorkshire Devolution Deal will help assess the wider regeneration and economic benefits a new station could achieve.”
The DfT said improvements to Sheffield rail lines are already in the IRP core pipeline, which includes the Hope Valley upgrade allowing 3 fast trains per hour to Manchester with a journey time as low as 44 minutes.
Hull will be considered later.
Reacting to the DfT announcement, West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin said, “We have been absolutely clear that Bradford needs that vital new station. The Government made a mistake in excluding this option in 2021, so what has been outlined today is a welcome u-turn.
“But this constant dither and delay has set back our ambitious plans for a better-connected North, and it looks like we’ll have to wait again to see any tangible difference to the network in our region.
“What we want is to see spades in the ground and West Yorkshire getting a fair deal when it comes to transport investment and services that people can rely on.”
Transport Committee Chair Iain Stewart MP said, “The main arguments of the committee’s report have been vindicated as the Government has accepted that more work is needed on key elements of the Integrated Rail Plan – its cost-benefit ratios, contributions to levelling up, and projections on shortening journey times. We welcome those elements of the response, even though we regret this work was not completed before the major strategic decisions in the IRP were taken.
“We are particularly glad to see DfT taking an open-minded approach to building a new station at Bradford – sometimes dubbed the most badly connected city in the UK – and doing more analysis of a range of different network options.
“As we emphasised in our report, it is vital that the way this £96 billion investment is used is based on the most robust evidence. What we will be looking for now is a willingness for the Government to change course if that is what this renewed evidence base suggests.”
Meanwhile HS2 chief executive Mark Thurston announced his resignation yesterday amid severe delays and soaring costs that have seen the project scaled back. HS2 chair Sir Jon Thompson will take over as executive chair for an interim period.
