Campaign for a
North/South High Speed Line
To support the
campaign,
email your name
and comments to: mail@fasttracknorth.org.uk
The Case for High
Speed Rail in Britain
Changing Outlook
for Transport
Rising oil prices and pressure to cut
carbon emissions will change the future of transport in Britain.
Transport planning will need to
consider the long term effects of energy and environmental factors. In a changing world, planning will have to
anticipate future trends, rather than extrapolate from the past. Technologies
such as road charging, renewables and alternative fuels, high speed trains, and
maglev are likely to have key roles in future sustainable transport
developments.
North/South
Travel in Britain
The economies of Scotland and
Northern England depend on good links with the rest of Britain. However the
cost of transport over longer distances is rising with fuel prices. Air travel,
as a major user of oil, is particularly vulnerable. Growing congestion on the
road and rail networks is creating further barriers to efficient transport.
The case for a North/South High
Speed Line should now be looked at as a strategic priority to link Scotland,
the North of England, the Midlands, South-West England and London and, via the
Channel Tunnel, the continent.
Studies by Atkins show
the Scottish economy would benefit by over £7 billion from a High Speed Line.
Britain's geography has the
advantage that the largest cities could be linked via one spinal North/South
High Speed HS2 Line from
London to the Midlands, splitting to reach North West and North East England,
and Scotland.
Air and Rail
Transport in Britain
Airlines have over 80% of the
public transport market between Scotland and south-east England, and a
significant share of journeys from Newcastle to London.
There are now around 100 flights
daily each way between Central Scotland and London airports.
Air traffic was forecast in the
2003 White Paper to treble over the next 25 years. But this was based on a
stable oil price of $25 per barrel. Growth is now likely to be constrained by
fuel costs and pollution concerns. Air
travel is the fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emissions.
Air fares are certain to go
up. Including aviation in the European
carbon emissions trading scheme could further limit future expansion of air
traffic.
Rail's share of public transport traffic between Scotland
and south-east England is less than 20%.
On the East Coast Edinburgh-Newcastle-London line, where National
Express has recently been awarded the franchise, no major changes in journey
time are expected over the next 10 years. The fastest London-Edinburgh rail
journey by InterCity225 trains takes over 4 hours.
The West Coast upgrade to 125 mph speeds, with Pendolino
tilting trains, has cut rail journey times. Rail's market share from London to
Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool is increasing. The fastest Glasgow-London trains now takes just 4 hours 25 minutes. Further cuts to 4 hours
15 minutes are expected. This is near the limit achievable with conventional
trains.
European High-Speed Rail Travel
On the continent, High Speed Lines now link many major
cities. Superfast trains running at up to 200 mph have revolutionised the
perception of rail travel
These provide an attractive and reliable alternative to
domestic airlines. For instance, in
France, TGV trains now take just 3 hours to cover 460 miles between Paris and
Marseille, and have won around 70% of the market.
In Spain, the AVE line linking Seville with Madrid has
contributed to the regeneration of Andalusia.
There are now over 3000 kilometres of High Speed Line in
European countries including France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Belgium. By 2010
the European high speed network will have been extended to almost 6000
kilometres.
High Speed Rail and the Environment
Britain's first High Speed Line HS1
from the Channel Tunnel to London has cut London-Paris rail journeys to 2 hours
15 minutes, with Brussels under 2 hours by rail from London. Eurostar's
London-Paris market share has now reached 70%.
Eurostar trains emit only 10.9 Kg CO2 per
London-Paris passenger return journey,
compared with 122 Kg CO2 for airline passengers. While High Speed Trains use more energy than
lower speed trains, this is compensated for on a per-passenger basis by
generally higher average load factors, and also by attracting a greater share
of travellers from more polluting transport including air and car. Government
energy policy will reduce greenhouse
gas emissions from electricity generation in the UK.
HS1 Helps Economic Regeneration
The regeneration effect of HS1 has been shown to dramatic
effect in London's Olympic bid, where the new transport infrastructure through Stratford
in London was an important factor in winning the 2012 games.
HS1 is expected to bring major benefits to the Kent economy
once the full domestic service of high speed trains is in operation. HS1 will
not only cut journey times between Kent and London, but will provide additional
capacity to relieve the congested network in south-east England. High speed
trains can convey large numbers of people. Each Eurostar train can carry almost
800 passengers. A double track High Speed Line has capacity for up to 12 trains
per hour, corresponding to a total of
9000 seats per hour.
North of London
North and west of London, long
distance Inter City trains have a maximum speed of 125 mph, running on
alignments originally designed in the 19th century Victorian era.
On some routes, straight sections
of track could be upgraded to 140 mph but this would save only 10 or 15 minutes
on a 3 hour trip.
To achieve a breakthrough in
journey time and market share, new purpose-built
sections of track are needed. The latest 21st century technology supports speeds up to 220 mph.
The biggest impact of High Speed
Rail is on longer journeys of 150 miles or more. The longest journey times can
be cut by up to an hour.
A further benefit of a new High
Speed Line is to relieve congestion on existing routes, releasing capacity for extra freight and
shorter distance passenger trains on congested lines.
The key priority is for an HS2
line linking the major cities in Scotland, Northern England, the Midlands, the
South-West and London, and via HS1 to the Channel Tunnel.
Target journey times are as shown:
|
London to |
Now (2008) |
HS2 target |
|
Glasgow |
4 hr 25 m |
3 hours |
|
Edinburgh |
4 hr 12m |
3 hours |
|
Newcastle |
2 hr 38 m |
2 hr 11 m |
|
Manchester |
2 hr 15 m |
1 hr 15 m |
|
Liverpool |
2 hr 28m |
1 hr 36 m |
|
Leeds |
2 hr 18 m |
1 hr 25 m |
|
Sheffield |
2 hr 18 m |
1 hr 20 m |
|
Birmingham |
1 hr 27 m |
60 mins |
(source:Atkins 2003 High Speed Rail Study updated by
Scottish Association for Public Transport 2008)
HS2
Economic and Commercial Benefit
The High Speed Line Study (Atkins
2003 updated 2008) shows HS2 would bring a £45 billion benefit to Britain's
economy over 60 years. HS2 commercial performance could be optimised if:
·
Journey time targets are competitive with domestic flights
to establish rail as the market leader and earn a step change in rail revenue
·
The project is part of an integrated strategy to expand rail
capacity north of London. Prime InterCity trains using HS2 would allow more freight, and more frequent
passenger trains to stations on existing lines.
·
Existing city-centre terminals are used, upgraded where
necessary (including Euston, with short distance trains diverted by a new link
to Thameslink 2000)
·
HS2 train procurement is phased with replacing
IC225 trains
·
A new refranchising framework is set up for East and West
Coast, Midland and CrossCountry
franchises, based on joint use of HS2
for premium long distance traffic
The
Way Forward
High Speed Rail is a well-proven
sustainable technology for long distance travel in the changing circumstances of the 21st century.
HS2 is an opportunity for the DfT Rail Division
and Transport Scotland to harness this
technology to provide a step change in rail capacity, addressing Britain's
transport and environmental problems,
and promoting regional growth and social inclusion.
To bring the full benefits of High
Speed Rail to cities in England and Scotland a consensus view of the way ahead
is essential. A detailed analysis by DfT and Transport Scotland is now needed.
This FastTrack North website has been set up to help co-ordinate
information and views and announce future meetings. PTAs, Regional Transport Partnerships, local authorities,
enterprise companies and other interested organisations are welcome to
contribute to attaining the FastTrack North
objectives.
For further information email to: mail@fasttracknorth.org.uk