In an announcement laying out detailed proposals for the first new major railway in more than a century, Transport Secretary Lord Adonis said construction of a 250mph route between London and Birmingham would begin in 2017, at a cost of up to £17.4 billion -- cutting rail journeys between Britain’s two biggest cities in half to 49 minutes by 2026.
However, longer-term plans for a UK high-speed rail network appear to have favoured extending the initial route to the East Midlands and Yorkshire over a £15.2bn line serving Glasgow and Edinburgh.
The Scottish Chambers of Commerce (SCC) and environmental groups attacked the proposals, saying not enough had been done to promote rail over domestic air travel between Scotland and England.
Liz Cameron, chief executive of the SCC, said Scotland’s connection to the high-speed network remained “aspirational”. She added: “Scotland must be a part of our national high-speed rail network from the outset, and this announcement does not go far enough for Scottish businesses.”
Dan Barlow, head of policy at environmental charity WWF, said: “Aviation is the fastest-growing source of climate pollution so it is critical that alternative, more sustainable transport options are promoted. However, to be able to reduce demand for polluting short-haul flights Scotland must not be left behind in securing high-speed rail connections.”
Under the plans, Scottish
rail passengers would see the fastest journey to London cut by only 10 minutes over the next 15 years.
Travellers to Edinburgh and Glasgow would initially see a four-hour journey from London -- a marginal improvement on the 4hr, 10min express service in place today -- as the specially designed high-speed trains would not benefit from a tilting mechanism that allows them to accelerate around the bends of the West Coast Main Line.
Proposals to extend the network beyond 2026 would see journeys reduced to only 3hrs, 30min.
Mike Weir, the SNP MP, said: “Both Labour and the Tories are backtracking on high-speed rail in their race to Number 10 at the expense of the people of Scotland -- proof, if any were needed, that the London parties care more about winning votes than winning the best deal for Scotland.”
However, the SNP was in turn criticised by the Liberal Democrats for not engaging in discussions over how a high-speed rail connection would be funded in Scotland.
Malcolm Bruce, the LibDem MP for Gordon, urged the Scottish Government to “break their silence” on the issue. “While High-Speed Rail 2 has to start somewhere, we should not be limited in our ambition for a national line running between Southern England and Scotland,” he said.
A study by Network Rail, published last year, found that the full benefits in boosting rail use and cutting carbon emissions from domestic air travel from building a high-speed line would only be realised if a route was built all the way between London and Scotland.
Theresa Villiers, the Conservative shadow transport secretary, said her party was committed to taking a second phase of high-speed rail to Scotland.
“As Labour conceded earlier this week, they haven’t even initiated a dialogue with the SNP Government. In contrast, the Conservatives held a productive meeting with John Swinney over a year ago.”
Stewart Stevenson, the Scottish Transport Secretary, said it was vital Scotland was included in high-speed rail plans, which he said could unlock £20bn in benefits to its economy.
“We will consider this report in detail, and Scotland’s voice will be heard as the UK Government consult on their proposals later this year,” he said.
