Leigh MP James Grundy has welcomed the news that the Government intends to remove the Golborne link from the High-Speed Rail (Crewe – Manchester) Bill.
The Government has announced that this decision was reached after Sir Peter Hendry’s independent Union Connectivity Review found that the Golborne Link would not not resolve all the rail capacity constraints between Crewe and Preston.
Minister of State for Transport, Andrew Stephenson MP, who is responsible for the rollout of Government policy on both HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail, has confirmed that the removal of the Golborne Link from the High-Speed Rail Bill will mean that alternatives will be looked at again, to deliver for the taxpayer within the £96 billion allocated for the Integrated Rail Plan.
Commenting, Leigh MP James Grundy said:
“I am very pleased to announce that the Government has decided to scrap the Golborne Spur of HS2, after a decade long campaign by local residents, businesses, and your local Conservative representatives.
“This project affected thousands of families in Lowton and Golborne, including my own, and for the last decade caused huge suffering and uncertainty to the families and businesses affected as well as massive damage to the local area.
“I'd like to thank all the thousands of local residents in Lowton, Golborne and beyond, who supported the campaign to scrap the spur over the last decade. I always said we needed Golborne Station, not the Golborne Spur of HS2, and I'm pleased to have been able to deliver on both those promises.
“This will come as a huge relief to many businesses, resident groups and households across the communities that would have been devastated by the Golborne Spur.”