Tom Gordon MP: “North Yorkshire’s been left at the end of the line again”

Responding to the government’s announcement of £15.6 billion for transport investment, Tom Gordon, Liberal Democrat MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, welcomed the overall funding boost, but blasted ministers for once again overlooking North Yorkshire.

“This is a significant investment in public transport, and it’s long overdue. But while major projects are promised in West Yorkshire and beyond, there’s nothing for Harrogate, nothing for Knaresborough, and nothing for communities across North Yorkshire like ours.

“It’s not good enough. Harrogate and Knaresborough are growing towns with huge potential, but we’re stuck with a single-track on part of the Leeds to York line that belongs in the last century, not the next one.”

Gordon has been campaigning for investment to dual and electrify the railway line between Knaresborough and York, a crucial link for both commuters and regional growth, and says today’s announcement is a missed opportunity to back that campaign.

“The government could have chosen to back rail upgrades that would benefit people right across our region. Instead, we’ve had yet another announcement that ignores North Yorkshire entirely.

“A truly modern transport system shouldn’t stop at the border of a city, it should reflect how people actually travel. Whether it’s commuters heading into Leeds or families travelling between Harrogate, York and beyond, we need reliable, fast, green connections. This announcement doesn’t deliver that.”

Tom Gordon is calling on the Chancellor and Transport Secretary to rethink their plans and commit to meaningful rail investment in places that have been overlooked for far too long.

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

              •            The Harrogate–York line remains in part a single-track diesel route, limiting frequency and capacity.

              •            Today’s announcement included no funding for York, Harrogate, or wider North Yorkshire.

Details of the announcement can be found below (or via BBC here.) 

Trams form the backbone of the investment plans, with Greater Manchester getting £2.5bn to extend its network to Stockport and add stops in Bury, Manchester and Oldham, and the West Midlands getting £2.4bn to extend services from Birmingham city centre to the new sports quarter.

There will also be £2.1bn to start building the West Yorkshire Mass Transit programme by 2028, and build new bus stations in Bradford and Wakefield.

Six more metro mayors will receive transport investments:

£1.5bn for South Yorkshire to renew the tram network as well as bus services across Sheffield, Doncaster and Rotherham by 2027

£1.6bn for Liverpool city region with faster connections to Liverpool John Lennon Airport, Everton stadium and Anfield, and a new bus fleet in St Helens and the Wirral next year

£1.8bn for the North East to extend the Newcastle to Sunderland Metro via Washington

£800m for West of England to improve rail infrastructure, provide more frequent trains between the Brabazon industrial estate in Bristol and the city centre, and develop mass transit between Bristol, Bath, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset

£1bn for Tees Valley including a £60m platform extension programme for Middlesbrough station

£2bn for the East Midlands to improve road, rail and bus connections between Derby and Nottingham.