Pacer trains symbolised Government contempt for North – The Yorkshire Post says

Dubbed ‘trucks on trains’, it is to the credit of Grant Shapps, the current Transport Secretary, that he had the foresight to put the Pacers out of their misery in contrast to his predecessor – the cavalier Chris Grayling – who thought it was acceptable to keep them in service while slick new rolling stock was introduced in the South East. It was not.

That said, the presence of the Pacers, uncomfortable rattle-trap-like rail relics which represented the worst of the railways, did galvanise – even inspire – the award-winning and agenda-setting One North and Power up The North campaigns co-ordinated by The Yorkshire Post in conjunction with rival newspapers aross the region.

And, amid growing fears that the Easter leg of HS2 to Yorkshire, and the proposed high-speed line across the Pennines, will be delayed or downgraded – or even both – because of Covid, this newspaper, for one, believes that the Department for Transport’s new hub outside London should be in this region rather than the West Midlands, effectively a suburb of the capital, as some reports now suggest.

Only when Ministers and civil servants, the key decision-makers, have to use the North’s creaking infrastructre on a daily basis will they realise the extent to which rail services here still lag behind the rest of the country – even with the Pacers finally scrapped.

Support The Yorkshire Post and become a subscriber today. Your subscription will help us to continue to bring quality news to the people of Yorkshire. In return, you’ll see fewer ads on site, get free access to our app and receive exclusive members-only offers. Click here to subscribe.