Transport for the North’s Board met in Darlington on Monday 15 September, the last to be chaired by Lord McLoughlin, who is standing down this autumn after almost four years.
Transport for the North’s Board met in Darlington on Monday 15 September, the last to be chaired by Lord McLoughlin, who is standing down this autumn after almost four years.
Politicians responded to “very disappointing” pauses in a number of investments across the North, as they marked the beginnings of the railways 200 years ago.
The meeting expressed disappointment that several critical rail investments in the North had been paused in the recent government Spending Review. These included improvements on the East Coast Main Line (ECML) north of York, Midland Main Line electrification to Sheffield, work at Sheffield Station itself to improve capacity and upgrades to the Cheshire Lines route.
The Board highlighted the importance of all these schemes to support the proposed Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) network – and that delivering that network in full is still of upmost importance.
Members also expressed frustration at the pace of transport scheme delivery, from business cases to spades in the ground; calling for place-based appraisal and preventing delays which lead to cost increases. They intend to respond to the Government on these matters shortly.
As the public meeting concluded, there were also fulsome thanks for Lord McLoughlin.
Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, said:
I’d like to thank Lord McLoughlin for his contribution as we’ve continued to make the case for long-overdue investment in the North.
When he stepped in as Chair, we were looking for a political grandee who could open doors and make our case to government.
His knowledge and experience have helped us enormously and I wish him well for the future.
Leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council Louise Gittins – currently TfN Vice Chair – will become interim chair until new arrangements are in place:
My deepest thanks to Patrick for all he has done with TfN to help the travelling public. He has been an advocate for transport infrastructure and services to benefit the North’s communities and businesses, and I know we can continue to count on his support into the future.
An announcement on Northern Powerhouse Rail by the government is expected soon.
