HS2 cancellation presents a golden opportunity to reopen the Colne to Skipton line - Yorkshire Post Letters

Now that the HS2 rail line has been curtailed in all directions, east starting with the connection to Leeds, south to Old Oak Common near Ealing in west London, instead of Euston station, and north and west to Manchester, there is funding available from the Department of Transport to develop and electrify the Hull to Liverpool route.

Members of Parliament from all parties in the North of England need to work together and knuckle down and fight for, and take advantage of this golden opportunity, competing with the rest of the country's MPs, in order to get funding to reopen and mobilise two important railway routes - one linking Yorkshire to east Lancashire's Colne to Skipton and in East Yorkshire between Beverley and York.

The latter route affects me more, as road traffic between Hull, Beverley, Market Weighton and Pocklington is increasing year on year due to the growth of all these commuter towns.

The number of large new housing estates are now contributing to housing requirements set out by East Riding of Yorkshire Council councillors following public consultations, who are working to local plans in this part of the East Riding of Yorkshire.

Due to the low lying areas along the river Humber, making up the area of South Holderness not much more housing can be built as it is on a large flood plain.

I hope that the Secretary of State for Transport, Mark Harper and his Railway Minister, Huw Merriman, keeps a closer eye on the project finance and expenditure, which the previous Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps should have done instead of being the Conservative parties main media spokesperson.

This is a golden opportunity and maybe once in a generation to get these two former railway lines reopened to contribute to the mobility and growth of the Yorkshire economy.