BORIS Johnson has today unveiled a £96BILLION package to cut train journey times across Britain.
Critics accuse him of breaking his promise to Northerners by ditching a key HS2 route – but the PM insists his railway revolution will speed up transport.
Mr Johnson dismissed claims he had betrayed northerners as “total rubbish” and said the Integrated Rail Plan would help level up the country.
He said: “Our plan is ambitious, deliverable and backed by the largest single government investment ever made in our rail network.
“It will deliver punctual, frequent and reliable journeys for everyone, wherever they live.”
But while the overhaul slashes journey times across the board, some routes won’t be as quick as originally planned because of the scrapping of some lines.
LONDON
The first leg of HS2 from London to Birmingham is due to be completed in 2029-2033.
All journey times from the capital to the Midlands and the North will be slashed.
However on some routes the new Integrated Rail Plan only shaves a few minutes off the existing railway proposals.
Trains from London to Nottingham will be slashed from 92 minutes to 57 minutes, a dramatic 35 minute reduction that was initially only meant to be nine minutes.
But after scrapping the eastern leg of HS2 to Leeds all routes to the North East will take longer than the original plans.
While trains to Leeds were originally supposed to take 84 minutes, they’re now estimated to take 113 minutes.
Similarly whereas a trip to Newcastle was scheduled to last 137 minutes, it will now last 148 minutes.
Here are the full government estimates:
London – Nottingham: 92 mins to 57 mins
London – Derby: 86 mins to 58 mins
London – Sheffield: 118 mins to 87 mins
London – Liverpool: 132 mins to 92 mins
London – Leeds: 133 mins to 113 mins
London – York: 112 mins to 98 mins
London – Darlington: 142 mins to 125 mins
London – Newcastle: 169 mins to 148 mins
BIRMINGHAM
Phase 2 of HS2 that connects Birmingham to areas of the North is due to be completed in 2035 – 2040.
The western leg will connect the West Midlands with Crewe, Wigan and Manchester.
It means trains from Birmingham to Manchester will take as little as 41 minutes rather than the current 86 minutes.
But trains travelling to the other side of the country won’t feel as much of a benefit because of the scaling back of the eastern leg.
Under the original plans trains to Leeds would 41 minutes on HS2 – but without are due to take 89 minutes.
Here are the full government estimates:
Birmingham – Nottingham: 74 mins to 26 mins
Birmingham – Derby: 34 mins to 30 mins
Birmingham – Sheffield: 75 mins to 62 mins
Birmingham – Manchester: 86 mins to 41-51 mins
Birmingham – Leeds: 118 mins to 89 mins
Birmingham – York: 147 mins to 110 mins
Birmingham – Darlington: 175 mins to 136 mins
Birmingham – Newcastle: 206 mins to 167 mins
MANCHESTER
The Government today announced full electrification and upgrades of the Transpennine Main Line between Manchester, Leeds and York.
Ministers tout this will slash journey times, along with a new Northern Powerhouse Rail line across parts of the North.
But the watered-down rail plans mean routes from Manchester to the North East are not as quick as originally proposed.
Whereas Manchester to Liverpool was supposed to take 29 minutes, the revised estimates are 35 minutes.
Here are the full government estimates:
Manchester – Liverpool: 50 mins to 35 mins
Manchester – Leeds: 55 mins to 33 mins
Manchester – York: 83 mins – 55 mins
Manchester – Darlington: 115 mins – 81 mins
Manchester – Newcastle: 139 mins to 117 mins
