Midlands Rail Hub plans launched with roaring success
December 2022
- Midlands Rail Hub proposals launched at key event in Birmingham
- Shadow Rail Minister calls for reinstatement of train platform
- New figures on accidents on the A5
- Join us for our Marches Transport Summit
- Businesses show support for Coventry, Leicester, Nottingham rail plans
- Join us in Nottingham for our Transport Summit
- IRP one year on, a comment from our Chair
Midlands Rail Hub proposals launched at key event in Birmingham
MPs and stakeholders showed their support for the plans in the Birmingham City Council House
- The plans outline up to £1.5 billion of new and improved infrastructure, to be completed between 2025-2030
- Space for up to over a hundred additional trains on the network every day
- Will cut journey times for thousands of commuters - between Birmingham and Hereford journeys will be slashed by up to 13 minutes
- Proposals improve access to high-speed services at HS2 at Birmingham Curzon Street
- Improvements to the Cross-city Birmingham line would enable trains to arrive every ten minutes
On 5th December, we launched the Outline Business Case for the Midlands Rail Hub, a piece of work years in the making. The plans will revolutionise rail travel in the Midlands, and the wider UK.
Our launch event saw support from politicians such as Andy Street, Preet Kaur Gill MP, and Deputy Leader of Leicester City Council Cllr Adam Clarke.
Our Chairman, Sir John Peace, had this to say:
"This is a truly momentous occasion for us, we are proud to unveil this detailed plan for infrastructure changes which will transform our region.
"We know the project has the backing of the businesses, communities and political leaders in the Midlands, and we stand ready to kickstart its delivery and get spades in the ground.
"The Midlands Rail Hub will significantly impact the future of travel for generations to come."
Shadow Rail Minister calls for reinstatement of platform
Platform 4 of Snow Hill Station in Birmingham has been unused since 2015.
Shadow Rail Minister, Tan Dhesi MP, joined colleagues in Birmingham to discuss plans to reinstate platform 4 of Snow Hill station. If the platform is running before HS2, it will allow extra trains from Birmingham's business district to the capital.
The MP later lead a roundtable discussion with local stakeholders about the importance of investing in transport in the Midlands.
Mr Dhesi showed his support for the Midlands Rail Hub by saying:
“It's fantastic to be here in Birmingham to discuss the Midlands Rail Hub and the reopening of Platform 4 at Snow Hill with Midlands Connect and colleagues.
“The plans they have for rail are important to connect local communities, ensuring rail is convenient and accessible for all.”
New figures released on accidents on the A5
36 accidents per year hit the logistics hotspot
- There were 180 accidents on the road from 2017 to 2021, with 45 in the year 2019 alone
- One in five of these accidents (20%) were serious
- Midlands Connect is working on a Strategic Outline Business Case for improvements to the corridor
Last month, we released data showing how road accidents affect the A5 between Hinckley and Tamworth. Almost all of these accidents occur when the road is clear (97.2%).
Our plans to improve the A5 corridor could reduce this issue, and we want the government to consider them for its next road improvement strategy. Our plans have the support of local MP, Dr Luke Evans, said:
“These figures further highlight the safety concerns that Midlands Connect and myself have been raising with the Government. I have requested a meeting with transport ministers and will be reiterating the economic, strategic and political importance and potential of the A5."
Join us for our Marches Summit
In February we will be exploring how we can better connect the Midlands and Wales.
Access to and from Mid-Wales is key to the Marches’ economy – areas like Hereford and Shrewsbury form major commercial centres serving communities within Wales.
In 2021, the Government highlighted the importance of such connections in its Union Connectivity Review (UCR), discussing how better transport connectivity could transform communities and boost economic growth.
Since our inception, we have worked closely with the Welsh Government to ensure that transport priorities are aligned on both sides of the border, focussing on projects to the west of our region that could improve access to leisure destinations, workplaces and key services.
The conference will highlight some of the work that has already been done to better-connect the Midlands and Wales, as well as discussing the strategic issues that Midlands Connect and the Welsh Government will pursue together.
Huge business support for Coventry-Leicester-Nottingham rail upgrades
Local businesses said the plans were key to levelling up
- Our business survey shows ‘overwhelming’ support for rail upgrades between Coventry-Leicester-Nottingham
- 93% of local businesses surveyed stated that they and their employees would benefit from Coventry, Leicester and Nottingham being more closely connected.
- 95% of local businesses surveyed stated that reconnecting the rail line and improving local train service would support the Government’s Levelling Up agenda.
You may remember in October we launched a survey asking businesses in Coventry, Leicester, Nuneaton, and Nottingham how improved rail links would affect their business.
The results are in, and businesses employing over 32k workers in the region have shown their support for our plans.
Our plans would reinstate direct rail services between Coventry, Leicester and Nottingham for the first time in two decades, creating over 2million extra seats on the region’s rail network every year. Currently those travelling between Coventry and Leicester have to change trains at Nuneaton.
Save your space for our Nottingham Transport Summit
Join us for this event in collaboration with Nottingham City Council, as we highlight the exciting transport developments in the city.
Hear from Midlands Connect colleagues, councillors, and transport experts at NTU Events and Conferencing, as they discuss the latest and future transport developments in the city.
Nottingham is at the heart of the midlands and can benefit from many of the schemes championed by Midlands Connect. Two major rail proposals would see Nottingham have better connections to Coventry, Leicester, and Lincoln.
This event will have a focus on transport as we head towards a net-zero future. Electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel, and public transportation are all hot on the agenda.
There will be speeches and panels, with opportunities for Q&As. Spaces are limited so be sure to sign up for this event as soon as possible.
The Integrated Rail Plan one year on
Our Chair, Sir John Peace, comments.
"The Integrated Rail Plan is now a year old and in those last twelve months we have worked at Midlands Connect to turn the words in that document into actions.
“We have delivered, at pace, the outline business case for our landmark project the Midlands Rail Hub and following Government’s £1m funding support, we are supporting the work of partners in the East Midlands to revise the HS2 Growth Strategy to reflect proposals for HS2 East."
If you have any other queries, please do not hesitate to contact us at mcadmin@midlandsconnect.uk or drop us a tweet @midsconnect
Further details of our work and news stories can be found at our website www.midlandsconnect.uk
