| Scotland must be included in £34bn rail link |
| Tuesday, 27 October 2009 | |
|
Scotland must be included from the beginning in the new proposed UK high-speed rail link, the Scottish government has said. Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson said any route must include both Edinburgh and Glasgow. The UK government wants to build a fast rail link between London and Birmingham, with an option to extend to Scotland and the Scottish government's business case will be submitted to High Speed Two Ltd. which is the company set up by the Government to consider the case for new high speed services between London and Scotland. With demand for rail travel at high levels, and potentially set to grow further, HS2’s task is to investigate the benefits a new line would generate for the UK against its costs.
Mr Stevenson said the economic and environmental case for high-speed rail was "clear, compelling and crucial" and that "it is essential we plan for the future with a clear, long-term vision for high-speed rail," "With a predicted increase in passenger demand across all routes, this strategic business case shows that extending a link to Scotland will maximise the overall economic and environmental benefits of any high-speed rail project." HS2 will deliver its first recommendations for the service between London and Birmingham by the end of 2009. Mr Stevenson said: "Failure to bring high speed all the way to Scotland will leave Scotland behind. While the cost of a high-speed rail network is likely to be high, the benefits are significantly greater."
Network Rail has already published a proposal for a £34bn route between London and Scotland. The proposal would mean trains travelling at 200mph from London to Glasgow and Edinburgh, with journey times cut to just over two hours. The line would run from central London, via Birmingham, Manchester, Warrington, Liverpool and Preston to Glasgow and Edinburgh and take about 10 years to build |
