At today's Budget, the Chancellor committed to the delivery of East West Rail to Bedford and Cambridge. She said work on the Marston Vale line would be 'accelerated' with East West Rail services by 2030, and that a consultation on next stages would launch in November.
England's Economic Heartland Chair, Cllr Liz Leffman, said:
"Our region and its concentration of knowledge-intensive businesses, world class universities and highly talented workforce are pivotal to the government’s economic growth ambitions. However, poor connectivity in many parts of the region is acting as a barrier to us realising our economic potential.
"We welcome the Chancellor’s commitment to East West Rail, infrastructure which our region’s businesses and local and combined authorities tell us is fundamental to allowing them to positively plan for the long-term future. EEH is working with Government and its partners to ensure the return on Treasury’s investment is maximised for our communities, businesses and wider UK economy.
"There is still much more to do to ensure our transport system enables our region’s unique economic potential to be realised. Our region already has the fastest growing population of any sub-national transport body area, with population growth almost double the average from across the rest of England. This has been achieved without the necessary investment in infrastructure. EEH’s Board of elected leaders is clear that, if the Government wishes to see even greater levels of economic growth, we simply must get the infrastructure first. This will be our message as we make the case for investment ahead of the pivotal multiyear Spending Review in spring 2025."