Billions of pounds could be spent on a ‘vision’ to improve railways around Bristol and in South Wales over the next ten years, politicians on both sides of the Channel will announce today (Thursday).
The dream could see up to £8bn spent on a host of new stations, services and connections in the West of England and South Wales, and include cutting journey times between Bristol and Cardiff to just half a hour, with four trains per hour. between the two cities.
The Secretary of Government for Wales will join leaders from South Wales and West England to launch the ‘Vision for 2050’, which will see vast improvements to rail services on this side of the Channel, as well as in South Wales. .
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The plan will come in two stages, with between £1bn and £2bn spent on near-term improvements that have already been largely outlined and will take until 2035, 12 years, to implement.
These include the first phases of the MetroWest project, which will see the reopening of the Portishead line and the reopening or creation of new commuter stations in and around Bristol, and the West of England ‘Transport Corridors’ scheme.
In the second stage of ‘Vision 2050’ up to £8bn will be spent on electrifying the Great Western Mainline to Cardiff, expanding the capacity of the Severn Tunnel, which has been a capacity limit since it opened in 1886.
The ‘vision’ being released today is for that work to increase capacity to allow up to four trains an hour between Bristol and Cardiff, with journey times reduced from the current 50 minutes to just half an hour. There would also be more trains between Swansea and Bristol, up to three trains per hour and reduced journey times from 90 minutes to one hour.
The scheme will be launched this morning (Thursday March 22) near Temple Meads station by an organization called the Western Gateway Partnership, a coalition of local councils representing communities in South Wales, Bristol, the West of England and as far as East Wiltshire. and Swindon.
The launch of the vision is backed by David Davies MP, Secretary of State for Wales, who said he ‘welcomed the ambition’, although it does not yet have any public guarantee of funding.
He said: “Connectivity within South Wales and South West England is vital to growing our regional economy. I welcome Western Gateway’s ambition and am pleased to have recently announced significant funding to help develop a number of key priorities, including congestion management on the South Wales corridor,” he added.
The Western Gateway Partnership is an attempt by political leaders on both sides of the Bristol Channel to come together and lobby for government investment in the same way that leaders in the North of England and the Midlands have done.
A spokesperson for the Association pointed out that currently the area of South Wales and the West of England lags behind other parts of the UK with slow train times between major cities such as Bristol and Cardiff, which is described as the “city of main minus directly connected”. ‘, by the Government.
Last month, Bristol Live revealed that part of Western Gateway’s proposed plan was to reopen or build new stations on the main line between Newport and Bristol on the Welsh side of the Severn Tunnel, which would ultimately improve commuter rail services also in the Bristol side. , given the increased demand from people who now live in South East Wales and commute to Bristol.
That’s something Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees, who is a board member of the Western Gateway Partnership, referred to when he helped launch the ‘vision’ this morning.
“Better public transport between major cities like Bristol and Cardiff, along with increased investment in intercity transport, is essential to decarbonise and grow our economy,” he said. “With over 80,000 car journeys across the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge every day, and this is predicted to increase, we desperately need long-term solutions. I am proud of the cross-partisan leadership that we have been able to provide through our association of local leaders and businesses.
“Developments such as the £95m we secured for Temple Meads and Temple Quarter in Bristol show how investment in transport for our area can spur wider regeneration by providing a gateway to Wales and the South West of England. I look forward to making the case for central government to endorse this vision to unlock the full potential of our Western Gateway area,” he added.
The Association told the Government today that its £8bn plan to improve rail links across the region could be compared to the Northern Powerhouse Rail programme, which is estimated to cost £17.2bn and HS2, which is likely to cost £17.2bn. 72.3 billion in total. .
The Association’s vice-president is Cllr Toby Savage, the Conservative leader of South Gloucestershire Council. “Working with our transport bodies and industry, we have a great opportunity here to vastly improve cross-border connections between England and Wales,” he said.
“Through our partnership, we have identified many shared strengths between both countries and these sectors will get a big boost through improved rail service. It’s been a difficult time for rail in recent months, but this vision provides a long-term ambition that can be achieved, placing confidence in our nation to build back better. With more journeys between Bristol and Cardiff than between Leeds and Manchester, we know the demand is there and we believe it is time for the government to recognize that our area must be next in line for investment to unlock our potential.”
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