The South West is to benefit from greater rail capacity and more reliable services Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly announced today.
She approved £425m of funding to tackle one of the biggest bottlenecks on Britain's rail network by redeveloping the tracks and station at Reading, which will get four new platforms. This will allow more frequent and reliable services on key routes, including the Great Western Main Line.
The scheme is a key part of today's rail White Paper, Delivering a Sustainable Railway, which guarantees a railway that will expand to carry at least 180 million more passengers a year nationally.
Major improvements include 1,300 new carriages for the busiest trains across England and Wales. This will include extra carriages on services in the Bristol area.
The Transport Secretary announced that capacity will increase to accommodate growth of more than 20 per cent across the country in the next seven years, on a network which will be even safer and more reliable.
The strategy also allows for a potential doubling in capacity over 30 years through continual and rational growth of a rail network which is flexible enough to respond to changing passenger demand.
It must also be a railway which sharpens its environmental performance and thrives on new technology, the strategy makes clear.
The costed plans for the near future also include a £120m grant for the redevelopment of Birmingham New Street and £200 million to start work on a strategic freight network.
Ms Kelly said:
"Our railway is flourishing and in this White Paper we show how we will grow and develop the network for decades to come.
"Tackling the current bottleneck around Reading station is the key to unlocking greater capacity and reliability for passengers across the south west.
"This strategy is aimed at delivering what passengers want - and so not only will there be more capacity and reliability on their trains but also more modern stations, simple and efficient ticketing, quality of service and value for money.
"Steady investment has given us a rail network which is in good shape for the first time in a generation and this means we can be ambitious for its future. It should be a railway which helps power economic growth and enhances the quality of our lives. We can't know precisely what our railway will look like in 30 years time but now we can be confident of making it bigger, stronger and more flexible."
Ms Kelly also announced that the Government will continue to limit fare increases under its control (including standard season tickets and savers) to no more than one per cent above inflation. A new simplified fares structure will introduce just four basic ticket types across the country, ticket retailing will be streamlined to reduce ticket office queues and station access and passenger information improved. .
More than 150 stations will be refurbished and upgraded at a cost of £150 million. The list is likely to include Fleet and Twyford.
The Government formally submitted its spending plans (including the High Level Output Specification) today for approval by the Office of Rail Regulation.
She approved £425m of funding to tackle one of the biggest bottlenecks on Britain's rail network by redeveloping the tracks and station at Reading, which will get four new platforms. This will allow more frequent and reliable services on key routes, including the Great Western Main Line.
The scheme is a key part of today's rail White Paper, Delivering a Sustainable Railway, which guarantees a railway that will expand to carry at least 180 million more passengers a year nationally.
Major improvements include 1,300 new carriages for the busiest trains across England and Wales. This will include extra carriages on services in the Bristol area.
The Transport Secretary announced that capacity will increase to accommodate growth of more than 20 per cent across the country in the next seven years, on a network which will be even safer and more reliable.
The strategy also allows for a potential doubling in capacity over 30 years through continual and rational growth of a rail network which is flexible enough to respond to changing passenger demand.
It must also be a railway which sharpens its environmental performance and thrives on new technology, the strategy makes clear.
The costed plans for the near future also include a £120m grant for the redevelopment of Birmingham New Street and £200 million to start work on a strategic freight network.
Ms Kelly said:
"Our railway is flourishing and in this White Paper we show how we will grow and develop the network for decades to come.
"Tackling the current bottleneck around Reading station is the key to unlocking greater capacity and reliability for passengers across the south west.
"This strategy is aimed at delivering what passengers want - and so not only will there be more capacity and reliability on their trains but also more modern stations, simple and efficient ticketing, quality of service and value for money.
"Steady investment has given us a rail network which is in good shape for the first time in a generation and this means we can be ambitious for its future. It should be a railway which helps power economic growth and enhances the quality of our lives. We can't know precisely what our railway will look like in 30 years time but now we can be confident of making it bigger, stronger and more flexible."
Ms Kelly also announced that the Government will continue to limit fare increases under its control (including standard season tickets and savers) to no more than one per cent above inflation. A new simplified fares structure will introduce just four basic ticket types across the country, ticket retailing will be streamlined to reduce ticket office queues and station access and passenger information improved. .
More than 150 stations will be refurbished and upgraded at a cost of £150 million. The list is likely to include Fleet and Twyford.
The Government formally submitted its spending plans (including the High Level Output Specification) today for approval by the Office of Rail Regulation.
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