FOLLOW RIA
On the eve of Transport Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan’s speech at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham, the Railway Industry Association (RIA) has called on the Government to provide more certainty on rail restructuring, enhancements, major projects and long-term funding plans.
This certainty will ensure rail has the funding it needs and that the potential for private investment is unleashed, meaning the industry will be able to do even more to generate economic growth.
RIA says that the Government can help by:
Commenting, RIA’s Chief Executive Darren Caplan said:
“UK rail is well positioned to support the Government in its mission to boost economic growth, with the industry contributing £43bn of GVA, supporting 710,000 jobs, providing £14bn in tax revenues to the Treasury, and generating £2.50 in the wider economy for every pound spent on the railway sector.
“But rail’s potential to deliver economic growth will be hampered by uncertainty and ambiguity if we do not get confirmation of the Government’s plans.
“As the new Transport Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan prepares to address the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham, we urge her and her colleagues in Government to provide the clarity the railway industry needs on Great British Railways, the Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline, major projects and long-term funding.
“By doing so, the Government would not only help to unleash the potential of rail to help drive economic growth, it would also provide a boost to connectivity and capacity, which the country is going to need in future if it is to link and level up communities across the UK”.