A
plan
for
a
new
railway
to
replace
the
axed
sections
of
HS2
to
Crewe
and
Manchester
is
being
published
today
by
the
mayors
of
the
West
Midlands
and
Greater
Manchester.
The
proposal
is
for
an
80km
line
between
Lichfield
and
High
Legh,
which
is
near
Warrington
and
just
south
of
the
M56
motorway.
At
this
point
it
would
join
the
Northern
Powerhouse
network.
The
scheme
is
the
result
of
work
chaired
by
former
Network
Rail
chief
executive
Sir
David
Higgins,
led
by
Arup
and
supported
a
private
sector
consortium
including
Arcadis,
Addleshaw
Goddard,
EY,
Dragados,
Mace
and
Skanska,
and
is
a
bid
to
solve
the
problem
of
capacity
north
of
Birmingham
which
will
not
be
relieved
by
Phase
1
of
HS2
between
London
and
the
West
Midlands.
The
mayors
say
the
new
line
would
cost
60
to
75
per
cent
of
the
HS2
line,
and
allow
speeds
of
up
to
300km/h.
As
a
result,
the
journey
time
between
London
and
Manchester
would
be
30
minutes
shorter
than
at
present,
and
only
about
15
minutes
longer
than
would
have
been
achieved
with
HS2
throughout.
The
line
would
be
built
in
two
sections
by
a
private
consortium
as
a
Staffordshire
Connector
and
a
Cheshire
Connector,
which
would
be
joined
at
Crewe.
The
Staffordshire
Connector
would
make
use
of
land
and
powers
already
secured
for
HS2
Phase
2A,
while
the
Cheshire
Connector
would
require
land
north
of
Crewe
being
secured
through
future
consents
for
Northern
Powerhouse
Rail.
The
report
says
that
by
making
use
of
land
already
bought
for
Phase
2A
between
the
West
Midlands
and
Crewe,
it
would
save
taxpayers
some
£2
billion
in
costs
from
the
HS2
Phase
2
cancellation
by
reusing
much
of
the
land,
powers,
and
design
work
that has
already
been
paid
for
with
public
money.
The
report
points
out
that
‘other
approaches
would
be
able
to
make
only
minimal
(if
any)
use
of
these “sunk”
costs’.
The
report
concedes
that
the
design
at
Crewe
will
be
‘challenging’,
because
of
the
complexity
of
the
existing
railways
in
this
area,
and
that
one
option
could
be
a
new
north-south
avoiding
line
for
through
trains.
Transferring
passenger
trains
to
the
new
line
north
of
Birmingham
would
release
additional
paths
for
freight
on
the
West
Coast
Main
Line,
which
the
report
says
‘is
the
most
heavily-used
freight
corridor
in
the
nation’.
It
continues:
‘This
will
greatly
contribute
to
the
Government’s
target
of
75
per
cent
rail
freight
growth
by
2050,
a
key
pillar
in
reducing
carbon emissions
from
transport.’
The
report
also
points
out
that
‘“doing
nothing”
on
this
corridor
is
not
a
viable
option,
from
either
economic
or
operational
perspectives’.
Greater
Manchester
Mayor
Andy
Burham
said:
‘The
report
is
clear:
if
we
fail
to
put
in
place
a
plan
soon
to
fix
rail
capacity
and
connectivity
between
the
North
and
the
Midlands,
the
already-congested
West
Coast
Main
Line
and
M6
will
become
major
barriers
to
economic
growth
in
the
UK.
‘But
there
is
good
news
for
the
Government.
The
report
concludes
that
we
do
not
have
to
revive
HS2
to
unlock
those
benefits.
There
is
a
viable
option
to
build
a
new
rail
line
between
Lichfield
and
High
Legh,
connecting
HS2
to
Northern
Powerhouse
Rail,
with
almost
all
of
the
benefits
of
HS2
delivered
quickly
and
crucially
at
a
significantly
lower
cost.
‘Doing
nothing
is
not
an
option
as
demand
for
rail
services
on
the
West
Coast
Main
Line
is
set
to
exceed
capacity
within
a
decade.
We
are
ready
to
work
with
Government,
colleagues
in
the
West
Midlands
and
the
business
community
to
build
a
railway
fit
for
the
21st
century.
But
we
do
need
early
decisions
to
end
the
uncertainty.’
Recently-elected
West
Midlands
Mayor
Richard
Parker
added:
‘This
report
confirms
what
we’ve
been
saying
–
additional
rail
capacity
to
and
from
the
North
is
vital
for
the
West
Midlands.
It’s
about
more
than
quicker
journeys;
it’s
about
connecting
people,
communities,
and
businesses
to
jobs
and
opportunities.
‘I’ll
work
with
the
government
to
ensure
this
happens,
but
we
must
also
learn
from
successful
rail
systems
around
the
world
to
deliver
the
best
network
and
real
value
to
the
public.
Without
this
extension,
we
will
continue
to
be
reliant
on
the
West
Coast
Main
Line,
which
is
already
maxed
out
and
impacting
on
the
people
of
this
region
and
wider.
We
need
to
free
up
capacity
and
we
need
to
get
this
right
–
for
our
future
and
our
economy.’
Sir
David
Higgins,
who
when
he
was
at
Network
Rail
once
told
Railnews
‘we
are
trashing
the
West
Coast
Main
Line’,
said:
‘Our
review
sets
out
a
plan
to
get
connectivity
between
the
Midlands
and
the
North
West
back
on
track.
We
don’t
pretend
that
solving
the
rail
challenges
between
these
two
places
will
be
easy.
We
know
it
will
be
hard
graft.
What
we
need
now
is
for
the
new
government
to
work
together
with
the
business
community
and
Combined
Authorities
–
take
the
practical
steps
to
make
a
new
rail
link
a
reality.
We
have
conclusively
shown
that
a
new
line
can
be
built
cheaper
and
faster
–
we
now
need
to
get
on
and
deliver
it.’
