Nottingham City Council welcomes reports that the electrification of the Midland Mainline is back on track.
Since proposals for the upgrade were put on hold earlier this year, the council and others have been urging the Government to reconsider, and it’s now understood the Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin will confirm the plans will be restarted.
The Midland Mainline has the slowest average speed of all mainlines in the country, putting the East Midlands at an economic disadvantage. The electrification of the route to would provide businesses with reduced journey times of approximately 90 minutes from London to help them to maximise their potential and compete with the best in Europe and beyond.
Productivity will be improved through reducing business travel time, increasing the numbers of visitors and tourists, better connections to Eurostar services at St Pancras International and helping to attract more businesses to locate and invest here.
Councillor Nick McDonald, Portfolio Holder for Jobs, Growth and Transport, said: “At a time when the Government says it is keen to rebalance the national economy, it never made sense for the electrification of the Midland Mainline to be shelved. It’s one of the vital drivers to creating jobs, growth and business opportunities both in Nottingham and the wider East Midlands region.
“The economic benefits that electrifying the line would make to this city and its business community are unarguable and clear and I’m delighted it is back on the agenda. The campaign that has been run to un-pause the electrification process is a great example of partnership working.”