More than a decade after the Northern Powerhouse Rail project was first proposed, the government has unveiled a three-phase plan for its delivery

 
The plans would see Manchester Piccadilly expanded

 
A three-phase plan for the long-promised Northern Powerhouse Rail project was unveiled by the government this week.

The project was initially proposed by former Conservative chancellor George Osborne in 2014, but promised investments were scaled back.

The current chancellor, Rachel Reeves, told the BBC that she “totally gets the cynicism” as passengers in the North “have been let down”.

But she added: “We’re doing this properly, doing this right.Because I want to give confidence to people that this is actually going to happen.”

The government’s new plan builds on the £11bn Transpennine route upgrade and includes a mix of upgrades and new routes.

Phase one will see upgrades to existing lines out of Leeds towards Sheffield, York and Bradford, including the planned new station in Bradford. This is expected to be delivered in the 2030s. £1.1bn has been allocated in the Spending Review to progress planning and development work.

The second phase is a new route between Liverpool and Manchester, via new stations at Manchester Airport and Warrington Bank Quay.

The third phase will focus on improved connections between Manchester, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield and York.

A central government funding cap of £45bn (at 2025 prices) has been put on the project, although this will go up in line with inflation.

We’re doing this properly, doing this right

Transport secretary Heidi Alexander, commented: “For too long, the North has been held back by underinvestment and years of dither and delay – but that ends now.”

The three-phase plan is part of a new government vision for growth in the North to unlock the region’s economic potential and boost living standards. Growing the productivity of region’s five largest cities to the national average would add up to £40bn a year to UK economy

The announcement was welcomed by leaders across the North of England, including Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham. He said: “Finally, we have a government with an ambitious vision for the North, firm commitment to Northern Powerhouse Rail and an openness to an underground station in Manchester city centre. A modernised Manchester Piccadilly could become the Kings Cross of the North, acting as a catalyst for major growth in our city region and beyond.

“Over the past decade, we’ve become the UK’s fastest growing city region, but underinvestment in rail infrastructure has long acted as a brake on further growth. Today marks a significant step forward for Greater Manchester. We’ll now work at pace to prove the case for an underground station and work up detailed designs for the route between Liverpool and Manchester.”

On the other side of the Pennines, the mayors of South Yorkshire (Oliver Coppard), West Yorkshire (Tracy Brabin) and York and North Yorkshire (David Skaith), issued a joint statement. They said: “The government recognises that all too many in our communities remain deeply sceptical: too many promises have been made and then swiftly broken by national governments of the past. We’re clear eyed about the work that is required to ensure these projects are delivered, and we are very pleased that government is working closely with mayors to see this through.”

The government has also set out a long-term objective to see a full new north-south line from Birmingham to Manchester, but says it won’t be a revival of the abandoned HS2 Phase 2.

 
This article appears in the latest issue of Passenger Transport.

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