Northern leaders call for government to publish rail investment strategy

Local political and transport leaders in the North of England have called on the government to publish its Integrated Rail Plan, the multi-billion pound investment strategy for the network.

Covering the North and Midlands of England, the Integrated Rail Plan will detail the long-term future of railways and provide certainty to local communities over investment and delivery of major projects.

Transport for the North (TfN) and metro-mayors and council leaders in the region have come together to call for the plan to be published urgently to avoid any delays to high-profile schemes such as HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail. Publication of the strategy will also help to tackle critical congestion hotspots on the rail network, such as in Manchester City Centre, and support investment into live projects such as the Transpennine Route Upgrade, which this week received additional funding from the Department of Transport.

A key pillar of the government’s levelling up agenda, TfN also called for the publication of the Integrated Rail Plan to give confidence to the economy as promised schemes will create new thousands of jobs and cut carbon emissions in the region. Tim Wood, Interim Chief Executive at Transport for the North, said:

It’s now critical that the Government publish the Integrated Rail Plan so the North can plan with certainty around the railway investment that will be delivered.

“We can’t risk delays to Northern Powerhouse Rail and HS2 arriving in the North and the economic boom both would bring – including up to 74,000 new jobs with NPR.

“Whilst the Government has committed to delivering the projects, there are question marks hanging over the detail until the Integrated Rail Plan is unveiled.

“As a co-client of Northern Powerhouse Rail with the Department for Transport, Transport for the North is ready to work closely with Government to get spades in the ground on the project as soon as possible.”

Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said:

It is worrying that the Government has yet to bring forward their Integrated Rail Plan, as it is beyond time that major investments like Northern Powerhouse Rail and HS2 begin to be delivered here in the North.

“In Greater Manchester we also need urgent progress on plans for HS2-NPR stations at Piccadilly and Manchester Airport to be fully integrated with our local transport network.

“Ultimately, if the Government is serious about levelling up, then the IRP cannot allow the ambitions of Greater Manchester and the rest of the North to be downgraded.”