Why Hull to Liverpool rail link is national priority – The Yorkshire Post says

Why, therefore, is there so much ambivalence to the fact that it takes three hours and 20 minutes to travel exactly the same distance from Hull to Liverpool?

That it is quicker to travel from the East Yorkshire city to London, a distance of nearly 180 miles, is indicative of the extent to which rail services here are stuck in the slow lane.

And it is just one of the many anomalies highlighted by Hull’s three MPs – Dame Diana Johnson, Emma Hardy and Karl Turner – lobby the rail industry over proposed timetable changes.

As their joint letter to TransPennine Express, the main operator serving Hull, makes plain, the proposed changes represent a lack of ambition and reluctance to restore services to pre-pandemic levels.

But their critique – precisely the type of lobbying that all communities should expect from their elected representatives – also highlights why the upgrading of trans-Pennine rail links is the national infrastucture priority and deserves the same status as the Crossrail scheme in London.

And while Hull and Liverpool are on opposite sides of the country, they have much in common. As port cities, they’re gateways to the world and increased rail capacity will make it easier for more cargo to be transported by freight.

Furthermore, better links across the North will enable more people to travel by train – whether it be for employment or leisure purposes – and, in turn, reduce carbon emissions from road traffic.

As such, the response to this letter will be an indication of whether Grant Shapps, as Transport Secretary, can deliver a joined-up rail network that begins to put the North – and passengers – belatedly in the driving seat.

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