Rail Minister Huw Merriman has confirmed electrification of the Hull to Selby line will happen, but hasn’t put a date on the big promise from the Prime Minister.
The city’s long-awaited transport link upgrade was name-checked by Rishi Sunak as he outlined plans for the £36 billion being made available by cancelling the northern leg of HS2. MPs and a senior business figure met with Mr Merriman at the Houses of Parliament, with Hull and East Riding of Yorkshire’s council leaders joining online.
Mr Merriman said it will be delivered, but when pushed on when, wouldn’t commit, citing the issues with the huge project that courted such controversy and overshadowed his party’s conference in Manchester - the very city missing out.
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“HS2 wasn’t done well and the last thing I want to do is replicate those mistakes,” Mr Merriman told the delegation. “There have been lots of promises on projects over the years and I don’t want to make any promises that can’t be kept.
“I’m sick and tired of railways not being done properly and I don’t want to throw dates out and then not deliver. If I promise something, I want to be able to deliver it.“We just need to pause for a while and have a bit of breathing space before we commit to more projects.”
The Hull to Selby stretch is the only element not electrified on Hull Trains’ direct link to London, with the £65 million fleet of trains ready to run. It would also complete the east to west element as part of Mr Sunak’s Network North plan.
Chamber chief executive Dr Ian Kelly said: “We had a detailed and candid discussion with Rail Minister Huw Merriman in the Commons.
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“He promised us the money which was being saved by the cancellation of the HS2 project would be available for electrification work on the Hull to Selby line and other rail improvements locally. However he was at this stage unable to commit to any timescales for work to begin.
“He also said that he was mindful of the freight issues and was looking at what could be done to improve those and wanted to see more freight on the railways and off the roads.“
While HS2 focused on speed of access to the capital, a large part of it was freeing up capacity for freight, key in the Humber with fuel and goods entering the ports in huge volumes.
Cllr Mike Ross, leader of Hull City Council, said a timetable for action could be imminent, following the meeting. He has already written to Transport Secretary Mark Harper asking for confirmation. He said: “Rail electrification is something that would make a huge difference for Hull and the wider region, helping lead to quicker connections to the rest of the north of England.
“Sadly, it is something that has been promised by previous governments, only for those promises to be broken later on. This is why it is so important for the government now to clearly set out when and how this will happen. I look forward to getting more information from the government on exactly what they are proposing. Now is the time for the government to turn their promises into action.”
Better connectivity via rail electrification could potentially put 1.1 million people and 31,000 businesses within 90 minutes of Hull. As well as cutting journey times between Hull and Leeds from 57 minutes to 38 minutes, it would also clean up the mode of transport.
The proposals for the reopening of the Hull to York railway line were also discussed, with Mr Merriman - who recently visited Goole's emerging train manufacturing plant - promising to investigate the possibilities and potential costs, recognising that there was a significant potential benefit to the region for that scheme to be progressed.
City MPs Dame Diana Johnson and Emma Hardy had organised the meeting, with Beverley MP Graham Stuart also attending, along with local rail expert David Walford.