Birmingham Airport unveils long-term vision for economic growth

Birmingham Airport has unveiled its long-term economic vision for growth hailing its plan alongside HS2 and the M42 gateway project as a once-in-a-generation opportunity.

Birmingham Airport, together with a coalition of business leaders have unveiled a vision that would enable the Airport to grow in line with future demand, boosting global connectivity and creating over a quarter of a million new jobs in the Midlands, helping to rebalance the UK economy.

This vision supports growth of up to 70 million passengers each year and up to 500,000 air transport movements from an expanded facility. The Airport’s vision supports the development of a business park for the Midland’s manufacturing sector alongside the expanded site, and one of Europe’s biggest conference centres at the NEC, all based at the cross-roads of Britain’s road and rail system.

A map describing the lay-out of the area for potential future growth can be found by visiting www.balancedaviationdebate.com or clicking here.

The Airport’s long-term vision is a response to questions asked by the Airports Commission, which is examining the need for additional UK airport capacity and will recommend to Government how this can be met in the short, medium and long-term.

Paul Kehoe, CEO of Birmingham Airport, said: “Great cities like Birmingham deserve great airports. In twenty years’ time British air travel will double and it is widely acknowledged that all the country’s long-haul traffic cannot be routed through one airport in West London.

“Instead, we believe that the best thing for UK aviation is to create a network of long-haul national airports, each supporting the comparative economic advantages of that region to boost trade, foreign investment and tourism.”

A high proportion of the country’s potential demand for business air travel comes from the Midlands catchment area. It is home to half a million businesses, 6.5 million employees and specialises in high-value manufacturing sectors.

Expanding Birmingham Airport alongside the M42 gateway project and High Speed Two is a once in a generation opportunity to meet the UK’s aviation capacity needs.

The news release can be read in full here.

HS2 delivers capacity – Letters to the editor

On Saturday (May 18) the Express & Star published a story which suggested train services would be cut as a result of HS2 in Staffordshire and the Black Country.

In fact, HS2 will release capacity on existing lines for MORE services.

Centro chief executive Geoff Inskip responded in a letter to the editor:

Dear Sir 

Following Saturday’s (May 18) story about high speed rail I’d like to reassure Express & Star readers that HS2 will , in fact, make a real difference to the West Midlands and deliver much needed capacity on our railway allowing  us to run many more services on existing lines. 

Centred on the West Midlands, HS2 will connect eight of our ten major cities slashing journey times between our region and London,  the North West,  east Midlands and Yorkshire, making the West Midlands much better connected.

HS2 will release capacity on our existing lines allowing us to run more passenger and freight services.

At Centro we have devised a  timetable which would use this capacity to increase services between Wolverhampton and Birmingham Airport and introduce a London service from Walsall,  for example.

With rail use continuing to grow – we’ve seen passenger levels double in a decade in the West Midlands – therefore this extra  capacity that HS2 will deliver is vital.

Our economic research reveals the London-Birmingham first phase of high speed rail alone will bring 22000 jobs and £1.5bn per year to our region.

We can’t afford not to build HS2.

Yours etc

Geoff Inskip

 

HS2 delivers jobs, investment and rail capacity to the West Midlands

Capacity is too important to ignore

Transport leader Geoff Inskip said building HS2 was essential to meet booming demand on UK railways and bring jobs and investment to the West Midlands.

Mr Inskip,  chief executive of regional transport authority Centro, spoke following the findings of the National Audit Office report on HS2 – HS2: A Review of Early Programme Preparation

Mr Inskip said: “We are running out of rail capacity and that is why HS2 is so important to our economy. High speed rail will bring fast, direct services connecting eight of our ten largest cities, but it will also release capacity for more services on our increasingly busy existing lines.”

He said research revealed HS2 would deliver 22,000 jobs and £1.5bn per year to the West Midlands.

“But these are the benefits from phase one between London and Birmingham alone,” he said.

“We’ve moved on a lot since then, we’re working with the other regions and the project has real momentum. The Government’s continuing commitment in the Queen’s Speech and cross-party support for HS2 is terrific news.”

Further research is being completed by Centro to understand the increased benefits of phase two of HS2 connecting the West Midlands with Leeds and Manchester.

Mr Inskip added that authorities and organisations across the West Midlands were working together in a Local Connectivity Group to maximise the benefits of bringing high-speed rail to the West Midlands.

The West Midlands economic work was mentioned by NAO in their report: 

2.8 Birmingham City Council told us that they are confident that the programme will act as a stimulus to regenerate parts of the city centre. Centro, the Integrated Transport Authority for the West Midlands, commissioned separate analysis of the impact of High Speed 2 which estimated the line could support an extra 22,000 jobs in the West Midlands.

In the coming weeks Go-HS2 will release figures for Birmingham to Manchester/Leeds.

 

Yes, HS2 does stop in Birmingham!

Yes, HS2 stops in Birmingham

On Monday (May 6) the Coventry Telegraph published a letter from MT Hancock of Wyken, Coventry, stating HS2 would not go to Birmingham and that journey times would not be reduced significantly.

Go-HS2 responded in a letter published in the Coventry Telegraph yesterday (May 9).

Dear Sir,

I write in response to MT Hancock’s letter of May 6 which incorrectly states HS2 will not go to Birmingham. The letter suggests the line will only go to Solihull and that passengers will have to change trains to reach Birmingham.

In fact, HS2 services will run from Moor Street, next to the Bullring in Birmingham city centre, with stops at Birmingham Interchange and Old Oak Common in west London before arriving at Euston.

The letter also states there will not be much of a time saving overall.

Again, this is not the case as journey times between Birmingham city centre and London will be reduced from around 1h 23m at present to a fastest time of 45 minutes.

Demand for rail continues to grow and HS2 also releases capacity on existing lines for more local, regional and freight services.

Regards etc…

HS2 – Vital to provide the extra capacity our rail network needs

Shadow rail minister Lilian Greenwood MP says HS2 is not just about London/pic courtesy of Labour

‘There is no question that HS2 is vital to provide the extra capacity our rail network needs.’

Shadow rail minister Lilian Greenwood MP was speaking at Insight Public Affairs event: HS2 in the Queen’s Speech last night (May 8).

She said Labour would continue to provide cross-party support for paving legislation and the hybrid bill, but added ‘We would have liked to have seen work start in the north and south at the same time.’

She was keen to point out that HS2 is not just about London, highlighting the importance of connecting cities in the Midlands and North.

She also said Labour would demand continuing investment in the existing rail network.

Alex Burrows, Head of Transport and Infrastructure at Insight, pointed out the average speed between Nottingham and Birmingham was currently around 40mph with a journey time of around one hour 20 minutes.

In further discussion Paul Chapman, of HS2 Ltd, said freight would benefit from released capacity on existing lines. Tony Mercado, of Alstom UK, said increasing freight on the West Coast Main Line would help to reduce motorway congestion bringing about wider benefits.

Could increased freight reduce road congestion?

Charlie Johnson-Ferguson, of RICS, said that there was an opportunity from projects including the Olympics, Crossrail and HS2 to export British expertise.

Lilian Greenwood MP, Paul Chapman of HS2 Ltd and Charlie Johnson-Ferguson of RICS were on the panel, which was chaired by Alex Burrows of Insight Public Affairs.

HS2’s inclusion in the Queen’s Speech is great news for the West Midlands

Geoff Inskip welcomes HS2′s inclusion in the Queen’s Speech

Transport leader Geoff Inskip says HS2’s inclusion in the Queen’s Speech is great news for the West Midlands economy bringing jobs and investment.

Mr Inskip, chief executive of regional transport authority Centro, said HS2 was now one of the Government’s top priorities in the coming year and this would mean the project can press ahead with legislation and secure benefits for the regions.

“This is exactly what we wanted to hear – a continuing commitment and tremendous news for the West Midlands,” Mr Inskip said.

“HS2 will bring fast, direct services connecting eight of our ten largest cities, but it will also release capacity for more services on our existing lines.

“We’re already working to get the best possible benefits from HS2 at a local and regional level and so this continuing, unwavering commitment is crucial.”

Mr Inskip said research revealed that HS2 would deliver 22,000 jobs and £1.5bn per year to the West Midlands when phase one of the high-speed line between London and Birmingham was completed.

Further work is being done to calculate the benefits for phase two of the project which runs from the West Midlands to Manchester and Leeds.

Authorities and organisations across the region are working together in a Local Connectivity Group to maximise the benefits of bringing high-speed rail to the West Midlands.

They are calling for direct international services to destinations including Paris and Brussels and examining new routes for Metro and heavy rail to feed into and connect with the region’s two high speed rail stations.

They also want to increase rail services on existing corridors, including Wolverhampton to Birmingham Airport and Birmingham to Coventry.

The Group also want the Birmingham city centre station HS2 in Moor Street to be designed to allow for swift transfer between local and high speed services.

HS2 Ltd reveal new plans for Euston

HS2 Ltd image of Euston station, amended plan

HS2 Ltd has revealed amended plans for Euston station in a press release issued this morning.

HS2 Ltd’s revised proposal features:

• Potential opportunities for over-station development – with the possibility of being used for future homes, open space and businesses.
• The capacity needed for high speed and conventional trains
• New platforms and facilities for the high-speed trains
• New, improved facilities for all passengers in a redeveloped, integrated station with a new, combined concourse and façade
• Better connections with the Underground, including a new Underground ticket hall
• A sub-surface pedestrian link between Euston and Euston Square Tube
• East-west pedestrian routes across the station, helping to link communities on either side of the station.

HS2 Ltd Chief Executive Alison Munro said: “HS2 will be an engine for growth that supports the creation of thousands of jobs for Londoners, provides extra space on the existing lines for more commuter services, and improved connectivity with our great northern cities.

“Community concerns have been raised about the potential disruption caused by the redevelopment of Euston Station. Following more work done by our engineers to find the best way to deliver best value for taxpayers, we have identified an option that we believe delivers great opportunities for the area while minimising the potential effects on local communities in Camden and on passengers.”

HS2 Ltd’s news release can be viewed here.

The proposal HS2 Ltd has developed for Euston Station involves:

• Retaining platforms 1-15 (of Euston’s 18 platforms) at their current level with some modifications (this includes removing platforms 9 and 10 so that adjacent platforms can be lengthened – resulting in 13 long platforms) but improving the station around them – with a new concourse
• Building 11 new platforms for high speed trains next to the existing platforms.

The BBC reported on the news here