Call for HS2 to run to Scotland and cut London rail journey time to three hours

The controversial HS2 rail link should run to Scotland to boost connectivity, cut carbon and rebalance the economy post Covid-19, according to a new report published today.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson talks with apprentices during a visit to Curzon Street railway station in Birmingham where the HS2 rail project is under construction.

The High Speed Rail Group said that joining the route to Scotland would cut travel time to London to just over three hours and pave the way for a significant reduction of carbon emissions in line with the Scottish Government’s 2045 net-zero target.

The report, produced by independent policy research group Greengauge 21, suggests a programme of upgrades to existing lines, as well as new dedicated sections of high speed line.

It recommends a new line from Carstairs to Rutherglen and separation of a fast approach from there to Glasgow Central, as well as further development of capacity at the station; a second new line parallel to the existing approach from Dunbar to Edinburgh, increasing the number of platforms at Waverley station and remedial works to address the threat of coastal erosion to the line north of Berwick.

The report also recommends the electrification of the main lines to Stirling, Perth, Inverness, Dundee and Aberdeen and completion of the Borders railway.

HS2 got the go-ahead in February from Boris Johnson, despite predicted costs reaching £106 billion, but the existing plan for new high speed infrastructure does not extend north of the Manchester-Leeds-York axis, and instead HS2 in Scotland is expected to operate on the existing East and West Coast main lines.

Yet since 2006, passenger numbers have increased between Glasgow and London by 120 per cent, between Manchester and Scotland by 191 per cent, and between Birmingham and Scotland by 261 per cent, and cross-Border lines are operating at their capacity limits.

The report’s author Jim Steer said extending HS2 to Scotland would boost capacity and meet the projected demand for both freight and passenger travel, while cutting journey times to London to three hours and ten minutes.

He said there was also a potential saving of 45,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year, from taking freight off the road, and driving passengers off “carbon heavy” short haul flights and on to “green rail”. Further, he said the line to Scotland had a higher rate of economic return.

Mr Steer said: “As the UK begins to emerge from Covid-19, the focus on a green recovery is essential.

“As transport is now the largest contributor to the UK’s emissions, the sector has a duty to act quickly and decisively to reduce them.”

Scottish Greens transport spokesperson John Finnie said Scotland’s “antiquated rail network” needed “significant investment”. He said: “Many routes are embarrassingly inadequate, with journeys often slower than in Victorian times.”

A Transport Scotland spokesman said work would get underway shortly to decide if there was a business case for the recommended improvements. “The Scottish Government welcomes the High-Speed Rail and Scotland Report, which sets out the case for improved Anglo-Scottish connectivity,” the spokesman said. “We are supportive of high speed rail and welcome the economic benefits that HS2 will bring to Scotland.”