New Industries, Future Jobs - High Speed Rail
Issue>
- High speed rail.
Key points
- High speed rail will help drive sustainable growth and create new jobs.
- Britain must do more than simply recover from recession - we need to plan for prosperity. That means supporting the new industries and technologies that will drive growth and create new jobs.
- High speed rail would slash journey times (to 49 minutes between London and Birmingham); create jobs (10,000 in constructing and 2,000 in operating the London-Birmingham line alone); and help cut carbon emissions by leading to shifts from the plane to the train.
- So today we are announcing our preferred high speed rail route between London and Birmingham. We are also asking that further detailed work is done on a high speed network linking London and Birmingham to Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield and the East Midlands. This would also allow much faster services further north - such as the north east and Scotland.
- The proposals for the development of a 335 mile 'Y'-shaped network would revolutionise Britain's rail network by delivering an initial core high speed rail network with trains running at up to 250 miles per hour.
- Connections onto existing tracks would be included, allowing direct high speed train services to be operated to cities including Glasgow, Edinburgh, Newcastle and Liverpool as soon as the line opens. This would bring Scotland within 3 hours of London. Further consideration will also be given to extending the network subsequently to these and other major destinations.
- Making the announcement, Transport Secretary Lord Adonis said:
"The time has come for Britain to plan seriously for high speed rail between our major cities. The high speed line from London to the Channel Tunnel has been a clear success, and many European and Asian countries now have extensive and successful high speed networks. I believe high speed rail has a big part to play in Britain's future.
"Over the next twenty to thirty years the UK will require a step-change in transport capacity and connectivity both to promote and respond to long-term economic growth. However, this must be delivered sustainably, without unacceptable environmental impacts, and in line with the Government's strategy to promote a low carbon economy.
"High speed rail would be by far the most effective way to achieve this step-change, offering a balance of capacity, connectivity and sustainability benefits unmatched by any other option.
"The proposed high speed rail strategy I am setting out today will now go forward to full public consultation in the Autumn. Building this network would not only revolutionise Britain's transport, but would also present significant new opportunities for the UK's design, engineering, construction and manufacturing sectors, creating new jobs and skills."
- When the cameras are on, the Tories talk about high speed rail. But when the cameras are off, they refuse to work with the Government to make it happen.
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