The government is to announce a £9.2bn railway investment for England and Wales today, that is set to help “close the north south divide” according to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg.
The investment refers to the period 2014-2019, with £5bn used to complete current schemes such as Crossrail and Thameslink and £4.2bn expected to fund new projects, including the electrification of the stretch of railway between Bedford and Sheffield, as well as the ones between London and Bristol-Cardiff and between Manchester and Liverpool, Blackool and Leeds.
To allow for trains to travel across northern England more frequently and faster, a part of the funds will support a number of projects in the Northern Hub around Manchester.
The East Coast Main Line is also to be upgraded between London and Leeds and Newcastle.
Prior to the announcement, Mr Clegg said: “It’s great for the economy because it creates jobs and it helps close the north south divide. It’s good for the environment because it produces a cleaner way of getting about and it’ll help millions of rail passengers in the future who’ll be able to rely on clean, timely and reliable trains.”
