Hull and East Yorkshire 'hardest hit by Integrated Rail Plan betrayal', says Keir Starmer

Speaking to The Yorkshire Post following a visit by train to the region last week, Sir Keir said Hull and the rest of the region had cause to feel even more aggrieved than the rest of Yorkshire from Boris Johnson’s rail plans.

It had been hoped Hull would be linked to a new Northern Powerhouse Rail network but Hull was not included in the route and despite the IRP admitting the key port currently suffers poor connections to Leeds and Sheffield, it said electrifying or improving those routes in future could not be guaranteed and would only be “subject to affordability” once other elements of the plan had been delivered.

Rather than the full proposed NPR route between Liverpool and Hull with a new high-speed line between Manchester and Leeds, the IRP instead offers an abridged new line between Warrington and Marsden on the edge of Yorkshire which will then join existing track.

Sir Keir said: “I’ve been to Hull and East Yorkshire many times and this is the second or third time this year. Yorkshire itself was left behind and betrayed by the Government two weeks ago when they abandoned their promise on HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail.

“But East Yorkshire in particular has been even more let down because it always seems to be last on the line for the Government. There’s a strong feeling Yorkshire has been betrayed but East Yorkshire in particular has been left off the Government list for years.

“Even now there is no real plan to do anything in relation to East Yorkshire until pretty well everything else has been done.”

Sir Keir said electrification of routes from Hull to Leeds and Sheffield would be an important initial step.

“I want to see much better connectivity across East-West. I lived in Leeds for a number of years and I know how bad the East-West line going to Hull or the other way to Manchester is. It needs investment, it needs the new line the Government promised because upgrading the existing line doesn’t deal with its congestion and doesn’t bring the investment the line would have brought.”

Leeds route 'should take priority'

Future development work on rail routes to Hull “should focus on electrification and line speed improvements to improve journey times from Hull to Leeds”, the Integrated Rail Plan states.

It highlights that connections to Hull from Sheffield and Leeds “are currently poor, with journey times of 77 and 57 minutes respectively”.

The report notes that “Hull is a key port and integral to the regional economy” and claims that the planned NPR network covering Liverpool to York will benefit Hull by increasing rail capacity in the North.

Read more:

Hull 'effectively removed from UK rail map by Government', claims city council leader

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