Connect to Compete: High Speed Rail Link Consultation Responses Needed
Published by Simon Gwynn on Sat 09 Jun 12 @ 22:10
In the run up to the Transport Summit 2011: Connect to Compete, your Chamber brings you all the latest developments in our city's transport infrastructure. You can book your place at the conference here.
Glasgow Chamber of Commerce is urging businesses in the city to submit responses to the High Speed Rail Link consultation (HS2) before it closes on Friday (29 July 2011).
The consultation is under way from current UK Transport Secretary Rt Hon Philip Hammond MP for the proposed route from London to Birmingham and from Birmingham to both Manchester and Leeds.
There is intent, but so far no formal commitment, that the high speed network should go all the way up to Glasgow and Edinburgh. Glasgow Chamber believes that this must become a reality or we face losing out significantly to those cities which currently stand to benefit from HSR. A fully functioning UK high speed rail network will provide the extra capacity that is needed and will help boost connectivity across the UK and with the continent. Rail capacity and connectivity are essential for business productivity and long-term economic growth.
The economic case for the inclusion of Scotland in the HSR network delivers an extremely high rate of return at £7.60 for every £1 spent and if HS2 should come all the way to Scotland, the journey time from London to Glasgow or Edinburgh would be reduced to 2 hours 30 minutes. These time savings will greatly improve our city's ability to do business with major UK cities.
To view our response to the consultation, please click here.
If you would like to submit a response directly, visit here.
