Government confirms “biggest ever” public investment in rail network

The Government has confirmed the Integrated Rail Plan will see an investment of £96 billion.

It has described its Integrated Rail Plan (IRP), to be fully revealed at 11am Thursday, as the “biggest ever public investment in the rail network”.

In a press release which trails the full reveal, it suggests it will transform journeys between the East and West Midlands, Yorkshire and the North West.

The statement also says there will be “local services as well as high-speed links”.

Although it doesn’t mention the eastern leg of HS2, it does say “the IRP delivers journey times which are the same as, similar to or faster than the original HS2 and Leeds-Manchester proposals, while doubling or trebling capacity and ensuring passengers and consumers benefit from tangible changes more quickly.”

It adds that the plan “will not only strengthen connections between major cities in the North and Midlands, but improve shorter-distance routes which people depend on every day, with an emphasis on increasing capacity and more reliable services.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “If we are to see levelling up in action now, we must rapidly transform the services that matter to people most.

“That’s why the Integrated Rail Plan will be the biggest transport investment programme in a century, delivering meaningful transport connections for more passengers across the country, more quickly – with both high-speed journeys and better local services, it will ensure no town or city is left behind.”

Transport secretary Grant Shapps said: “Throughout the pandemic, we stood by our railway and invested billions to keep the country moving, and we are about to unleash a £96 billion programme of investment that will transform a Victorian network into one befitting a modern country.

“The Integrated Rail Plan is designed to deliver for everyone, much sooner than under previous plans for rail schemes drawn up a decade ago, which no longer fit the way we travel today.

“Our plan will deliver a network that is fit for passengers today and for future generations – a network that works for every community and every passenger, right across the UK.”

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