The Government needs to ensure that the benefits of high speed rail are spread as widely as possible, a lobby group has warned.
Business Voice WM’s comments followed the Government’s re-working of its preferred route for HS2, the high-speed line linking London with Birmingham and the North of England, which was released on Monday.
James Watkins, BVWM executive director, said: “The high speed line would be the biggest civil engineering project the West Midlands has seen since Spaghetti Junction was opened in 1972.
“If this line is to go ahead it is absolutely essential for rural businesses to be properly compensated where they are adversely affected by its construction. And plans must be put in place for every part of the Midlands to benefit from the international connectivity it will bring.
“It is also important to hear from the Government at the earliest possible opportunity how the pending freeing up of capacity on the West Coast Main Line, as a result of the potential existence of the high speed network, will improve rail services for critical stations like Stoke-on-Trent.”
