Railway delay ‘catastrophe’ (From The Northern Echo)

Railway delay ‘catastrophe’

10:48am Tuesday 10th January 2012 in Keep The Region On Track By Rob Merrick

A TWO-YEAR wait for MPs to vote on a high-speed rail line to the North will be “catastrophic” and risks derailing the scheme, its architect has warned.

The delay – expected to be confirmed by the government today – would allow “Nimbys” to pile pressure on vulnerable MPs in the run-up to the 2015 election, said Lord Adonis, the former Labour Cabinet minister.

Accusing ministers of “dithering”, Lord Adonis called for legislation this year and for the second phase of HS2 – lines north of Birmingham, to Leeds and Manchester – to be speeded up.

He warned: “Delay simply entrenches opposition – including hostility within the Conservative Party, which is dogging HS2 – and gives it the belief that one last heave will see off a prevaricating government.”

Lord Adonis, who drew up the scheme two years ago, spoke out ahead of Transport Secretary Justine Greening confirming the go-ahead for HS2 today.

Ms Greening will face down critics of the plans in the Tory shires – including in the Cabinet – by announcing the Government will build a £17bn high-speed line from London to Birmingham, by 2026.

Under phase two, from 2032, the London-Newcastle journey time would be slashed from 3hrs 9 mins to 2hrs 37mins – because high-speed trains would run from London to Leeds, then switch to conventional tracks.

Today, Ms Greening is expected to set out mitigation measures to try to calm a growing revolt along the route, particularly in the Chiltern Hills, in Buckinghamshire.

Last month, newspaper leaks suggested £500m could be spent on a short tunnel in the constituency of Welsh Secretary Cheryl Gillan, who has threatened to quit over HS2.

Ms Greening will argue that rival proposals – increasing capacity on existing services – would be more costly, cause substantial disruption and fail to tackle overcrowding.

Hitachi will bid to design and maintain the HS2 fleet, pledging to build them at the factory earmarked to open, next year, at Newton Aycliffe, County Durham.