Ministers have abandoned plans for the £3 billion Golborne Link in Cheshire and Greater Manchester, which would have linked the HS2 network to the West Coast Mainline.
The 13-mile link was included in the government’s Integrated Rail Plan for levelling-up the Midlands and north of England, and the U-turn has angered industry leaders.
The scaling back also comes just six months after ministers reneged on plans to extend the HS2 network to the city of Leeds in West Yorkshire.
The link would have branched off from HS2 between Crewe and Manchester, traversing through Cheshire and Trafford before joining the West Coast Mainline just south of Wigan.
With this now removed, the Railway Industry Association, Rail Freight Group and High Speed Rail Group fear it will form a “bottleneck” on the railway network in the region to the north of Crewe, undermining decarbonisation efforts and worsening passenger outcomes.
Criticising the timing of the announcement, just prior to Monday’s confidence vote in prime minister Boris Johnson, the trio of industry bodies said in a joint statement: “It is hugely disappointing to discover that, on a day when much political attention was focused elsewhere, the government confirmed that the Golborne Link is to be removed from the HS2 project.
“Only six months ago, the Golborne Link was included in the Integrated Rail Plan, as well as the HS2 Phase 2b Bill.
“The link has been provided for in the budget for HS2 and is needed to allow adequate capacity on the national rail network to fulfil its vital function of handling the nation's longer distance movements of both passengers and freight. Without this connection, a bottleneck will be created north of Crewe on the West Coast Mainline, which in turn will negatively impact outcomes for passengers, decarbonisation and levelling up.”
The statement added that it was “essential” for ministers to “confirm as quickly as possible” how they “intend to protect the benefits of HS2 investment” and answer the “important, strategic question of how HS2 services connect into Scotland.”
Andrew Stephenson, HS2 minister, said that the government was looking into alternative routes for the high-speed trains to travel in and out of Scotland.
He said: “HS2 is a once-in-a-lifetime project that will transform travel across the entire UK as we know it and serve millions of people for hundreds of years to come, and it's absolutely vital that we get this right from the outset.
“Removing this link is about ensuring that we've left no stone unturned when it comes to working with our Scottish counterparts to find a solution that will best serve the great people of Scotland.”
However, not everyone was dismayed to see the back of plans for the Golborne Link, which was expected to open in the late 2030s to early 2040s and faced fierce opposition from local residents, MPs and councillors in Cheshire and Greater Manchester.
Russ Bowden, the Labour leader of Warrington Borough Council in Cheshire, said: “We have had concerns about the Golborne Link since the idea was first proposed, and I'm therefore really pleased to see that it is now no longer part of High Speed Rail plans.
“We recognise the huge benefits HS2 will bring to the north of the country, providing Warrington with better access and transport links. The Golborne Link, however, has always been a deal-breaker for us. It would have had profound and unnecessary impacts on many of our communities with no discernible benefits for our town.”
Image taken from Wikimedia Commons
