HS3 for the North?

This week the Chancellor, George Osborne MP, announced a plan to boost the economy of the North by building England’s third high-speed rail link. Immediately dubbed ‘HS3’ by many in the media, the new network will initially link Manchester and Leeds but will ultimately stretch from Liverpool to Hull.

The fastest train between Manchester and Leeds currently takes 49 minutes; almost twice as long as the similar 35-mile journey between London and Reading. It is hoped faster links between the Northern cities can boost business in the region and shrink the current North/South Gap.

Initially the project would be based on the existing Manchester-to-Leeds rail line but journey times would be speeded up by building new tunnels and vastly improving infrastructure.

In a statement Mr Osborne said: “The cities of the North are individually strong, but collectively not strong enough. The whole is less than the sum of its parts. So the powerhouse of London dominates more and more. And that’s not healthy for our economy. It’s not good for our country.”

Although no timescale or budget for HS3 has been fixed, Mr Osborne’s move is a sign that Coalition ministers are worried that the recovery is unbalanced and too concentrated on the South East. However, local council leaders have warned that the North extends far beyond Manchester…

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