Political leaders have sent a strongly worded letter to transport secretary Grant Shapps

 
Liverpool City Region metro mayor Steve Rotheram is among the signatories of a strongly worded letter to transport secretary Grant Shapps

 
Political leaders from Liverpool City Region, Warrington, and Cheshire West and Chester have joined forces to reject the government’s so-called option 5.1 route for the new Northern Powerhouse Rail line between Liverpool and Manchester.

In a strongly worded letter to transport secretary Grant Shapps, sent ahead of today’s Transport for the North meeting, Metro Mayor and leaders describe the 5.1 route as a “cheap and nasty option”, that the region will not accept.

The 5.1 option would see the Fiddlers Ferry line, previously used to take coal trains to the power station, upgraded to become part of the NPR network.

Plans for 5.1 would short-change the North West and represent a clear “levelling down” for our region

Today, the leaders have united to express their concerns that 5.1 has “become a departmental fixation that could be imposed upon us as a fait accompli.” They warn that pushing ahead with ahead with “plans for 5.1 would short-change the North West and represent a clear “levelling down” for our region.”

In the letter, they stress their support for the Northern Powerhouse Rail project, which they say has the potential to “be the single most important infrastructure project in the North West in the 21st Century”.

However, they have a number of key reasons for rejecting the proposed 5.1 route:

  • Fails to deliver the promised reduction to journey times between Liverpool and Manchester.
  • Limits the potential for expanding rail freight capacity.
  • Fails to offer connectivity upgrades between Cheshire and North Wales.
  • Creates unnecessary disruption during its construction phase.
  • Lacks value for money based on an underestimation of its cost.

The full letter (attached) is signed by

  • Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region
  • Cllr Liam Robinson, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Transport Portfolio Holder
  • Cllr Louise Gittins, Leader, Cheshire West and Chester Council
  • Cllr Karen Shore, Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways & Strategic Transport, & Strategic Transport
  • Cllr Russ Bowden, Leader Warrington Borough Council
  • Cllr Hans Mundry, Cabinet Member for Transportation, Highways and Public Realm, Warrington Borough Council

 
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