Better Transport

The Government published a White Paper on High Speed Rail on 11 March 2010.

To have support from environmental groups, high speed rail must be part of a package that reduces carbon emissions and protects biodioversity and landscape. 

Campaign for Better Transport published a briefing which sets out the background and key issues that need to be resolved.

Update: High-speed link to Heathrow is not needed

An independent report has shown that it is not necessary to link Heathrow to the High Speed 2 rail route between London and Birmingham. Campaign for Better Transport led the debate on high-speed rail and initiated discussions between environmental groups and senior politicians. We submitted evidence on high-speed rail as part of this review.

The report by Lord Mawhinney concluded that improved planning could instead enable the existing rail network to be incorporated into the high-speed rail plans. HS2 is to be ready by 2025. The Heathrow extension would have cost between £2 and £4 billion.

Stephen Joseph, Executive Director, Campaign for Better Transport, said:

“We are delighted to see that the evidence we provided was considered and that the report follows several of our proposals, notably recommending that a Heathrow link is not necessary at this stage and that the existing rail network is used to link Heathrow with high-speed rail connecting London with other British cities and the rest of Europe.

“These findings could help to lower the environmental impact of the plans, while the high-speed network will provide a viable alternative to domestic flights."

Click here for more information on Campaign for Better Transport's work on high-speed rail.