Network Rail looks west for high-speed rail link

Network Rail today unveiled detailed plans for a high-speed rail line running up the west of the country, predicting that the £34bn project would generate £55bn of economic value over 10 years.

The proposed 200mph high-speed line, which pre-empts similar plans currently being put together by the government, would connect London with the Midlands, the North West and Scotland, taking passengers from London to Glasgow in two hours.

Iain Coucher, Network Rail’s chief executive, said the link would transform Britain's transport infrastructure, delivering deep cuts in long-term carbon emissions in the process.

"It can promote economic growth, regeneration and social inclusion," he said. "It is a low carbon option – cutting domestic flights and taking cars and lorries off the road. It will release capacity on the existing rail network and revolutionise passenger journeys."

Demand for rail travel is growing and Network Rail estimates its main lines from the north to London will be full by 2020.

The company's 140-page business case concluded that a new high-speed line from London to Manchester boasting journey times of just over an hour and featuring a link between London and Birmingham offered the greatest benefits.

The proposed line would then split and continue north to Glasgow and Edinburgh, while a separate high-speed line would also connect to Liverpool.

The report estimated that a London-Glasgow route would reduce the number of domestic air passengers using Heathrow by 2.8 million per year.

Coucher emphasised that a decision on building a new route is needed quickly or the extra demand for travel will be met by cars.

Transport secretary Lord Adonis has established a company - High Speed Two (HS2) - and tasked it with drafting plans for a national high-speed rail network.

David Rowlands, Chairman of High Speed Two, said the company will finish a report on the issue later this year.

Responding to the Network Rail report, Rowlands said that it represented "a useful contribution to the much more detailed work that HS2 is doing on route and station options to the West Midlands, including Heathrow, and on corridor options beyond going north to Scotland together with a comprehensive business case covering all the costs and benefits".

John Cridland, CBI deputy director general, welcomed the report and said overcrowding on the rail network would cost the economy in the long run.

"The bold plans for new high-speed rail investment have important implications for existing rail services as well as the UK's connectivity with Europe, though they come with a hefty price tag," he said.

Friends of the Earth executive director Andy Atkins said the environmental success of a high-speed rail network was dependent on decarbonising the national power supply to ensure that trains are run using low carbon power.

"A fast and efficient electric high-speed rail system powered by renewable energy could provide a low-carbon alternative to short-haul flights and cars and play a major part in the development of a green transport system," he explained.