‘Disappointment’ at four-month delay on decision to dual A66

Transport for the North has expressed disappointment at the government delaying a decision on whether to dual the A66.

The A66 is the main route connecting North Yorkshire and the Lake District. The Northern Trans-Pennine project would dual 50 miles of road from Penrith to Scotch Corner.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper was due to rule on the £1.3bn scheme on Tuesday this week.

But the decision has now been pushed back until March 7, 2024.

Mr Harper said:

“The reason for the extension is to allow for further consideration of matters including those not resolved at the time the examining authority’s report was received by the Secretary of State.

“This will include the consideration of information submitted by the applicant regarding impacts on the North Pennine Moors Special Area of Conservation, to ensure compliance with the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017.”

Transport for the North, which was formed in 2018 to make the case for strategic transport improvements in northern England, said in a statement today:

“We are disappointed to hear of a delay to the decision on upgrading the A66. But the important thing is to get the right answer, which we strongly believe is upgrading this key route to improve connections and experience for the people that use it.

“Removing the bottlenecks along this key east-west corridor will make the road safer and more reliable for travellers and help freight get across the Pennines by linking ports on both coasts and providing onward connectivity to Scotland.

“It’s not only a hugely important route between the Lake District, North Yorkshire and the Tees Valley – and the dozens of communities in between – it also helps connect Scotland to our towns and cities.”

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Business Breakfast: Harrogate home care company wins at regional awards

Business Breakfast is sponsored by Harrogate law firm Truth Legal. 

A Harrogate home care company has picked up an award at a regional ceremony.

Continued Care saw seven members of staff make finalists for the Great British Care Awards, with Christine Middleton winning the Dignity in Care award.

The awards took place at the Royal Armouries in Leeds on November 11. Staff members from the Ripon and Harrogate offices were present.

Samantha Harrison, Continued Care director, said: 

“Christine is a worthy winner of this award. She is exceptionally kind and person-centred and has worked in care for a long time. We are so proud of her and of all our staff who were nominated, they are all winners in my eyes because they were put forward by the people they care for and work with.”

The awards hold a series of regional events throughout the UK to celebrate local excellence in the social care sector.

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Transport for the North appoint new directors

Transport for the North has appointed two new directors to its finance and strategy departments.

The organisation, which helps with transport improvements across the North of England, announced the new appointments this week.

Interim finance director Paul Kelly has been promoted to finance director. He joined TfN from Transport for Greater Manchester in 2018 where he was head of financial and commercial for Metrolink.

Mr Kelly said: 

“It is an honour to be appointed to this position and to have the opportunity to support Transport for the North as it transitions to a new structure and further embed its role for the North.”

New finance director at Transport for the North, Paul Kelly (left), and Katie Day, strategy, policy and communications director.

Paul Kelly (left), and Katie Day

Meanwhile, the new strategy, policy and communications director has been named as Katie Day. Katie’s last role was as director of policy and communications at the Office for Nuclear Regulation. 

Ms Day said:

“I am delighted to be joining TfN, and I am looking forward to leading our work on the refresh of the Strategic Transport Plan and the Northern Independent Economic Review. 

“It’s vital more than ever that we build a fresh evidence base to make the case for greater investment in the North.”

 

Harrogate and Knaresborough train operator accused of ‘dire’ performance

A transport leader has branded the performance of trains by the Harrogate line operator as “dire”.

Lord McLoughlin, chair of Transport for the North, today called on the government to urgently intervene to help end the current “unacceptable” levels of performance on the rail network in the north of England.

His comments come after new figures showed more than a third of Northern trains fail to run on time. Northern operates the Harrogate and Knaresborough line between Leeds and York.

In mid-summer, only 62% of Northern trains arrived on time. The figure increased marginally to 64% for the period from August 21 to September 17.

A press release by Transport for the North, which is a partnership of public and private sector representatives campaigning for better transport infrastructure in northern England, said services by Northern and other rail operators in the north “have been of a poor quality for far too long now”.

Lord McLoughlin, chair of Transport for the North, said:

“The current situation on the north’s rail network is simply unacceptable.

“It’s completely inexcusable that communities in the north of England are having to experience such a dire level of service. It requires an urgent intervention as it’s undermining businesses and holding back economic growth.”

He added “far too many trains” were being cancelled and “too many are cancelled at short notice causing chaos for commuters and local communities”.

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Lord McLoughlin, who is a Conservative peer, added:

“We want to see the operators given the freedom to negotiate a solution to Rest Day Working by themselves, and for a rail academy for the north to be fast-tracked, and for current devolved structures, such as the Rail North Partnership Board, to be strengthened and play a bigger role working with our partners across the north.”

The Stray Ferret asked Northern if it wanted to respond to Lord McLoughlin’s comments but we did not receive a response.

 

HS2 scrapping: How will it affect the Harrogate district?

The government faced a backlash this week over its scrapping of the eastern leg of HS2 to Leeds.

Leeds station is regularly used by commuters from Harrogate for changes to London, Manchester and elsewhere.

Ministers have outlined £96 billion plans to scrap the Birmingham to Leeds link of HS2 in favour of upgrades to the existing Manchester to Leeds line in an effort to “cut journey times”.

As far as U-turns go, the decision to scrap HS2 in favour of upgrades to rail track across the north has consequences for the district.

“Disappointed, but not really surprised”

The Harrogate line is one of the busiest lines run by Northern Rail.

Thousands of commuters use the line between York, Harrogate, Knaresborough and Leeds every day.

Leeds station is a connection for commuters to major cities and acts a vital piece of infrastructure for those travelling for both work and leisure.

So, the decision to scrap the eastern leg of HS2 has an impact on those who use the station every day.

While the project would have cut journey times from the north to London, it also would have freed up capacity for more shorter services – such as trains to Bradford and Halifax.

Brian Dunsby, of the Harrogate Line Supporters Group.

Brian Dunsby, of the Harrogate Line Supporters Group.

Brian Dunsby, of the Harrogate Line Supporters Group, said he was “disappointed, but not really surprised” by the government’s decision.

However, he added that he felt it would be more important for commuters in Harrogate if ministers focused on improving the Northern Powerhouse rail link from Liverpool to Hull via Manchester, Bradford and Leeds.

He said:

“Harrogate passengers are now getting the benefit of a two-hourly service to London Kings Cross and in just three weeks’ time we will see the services between Leeds and York via Harrogate doubled – with the current Leeds-Knaresborough services extended all the way to York every half-hour.

“This east-west connection is I feel more important for Harrogate business and residents and visitors.

“It is not really worth while our passengers to London connecting via Leeds for a few minutes saving on the planned HS2 London services by changing at Leeds on to a proposed “new” high speed train. The convenience of a direct service is what we need.”

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While the news on HS2 will come as disappointment to some, the district is served by London trains. LNER announced earlier this year that it was planning significant changes to its Harrogate to London route.

The operator launched a consultation with a plan to change its timetable, which will see trains leave Harrogate earlier in the morning but also leave London earlier.

LNER said times between Harrogate and London would be about 10 minutes faster as part of the new timetable.

Harrogate MP on HS2

One of the strongest supporters of HS2 when it was announced was former Conservative rail minister and Harrogate and Knaresborough MP, Andrew Jones.

In February 2019, he told a Transport for the North conference that it would be a “betrayal of the north” if the Birmingham to Leeds line did not go ahead.

Mr Jones said in a statement on his Conservative-run site that he was “disappointed” at the decision, but added that the government’s plan was “complex”.

He said:

“My first impression is of the scale of the announcement. £96 billion in spending is a major investment. It is the largest rail investment ever made by any government. This is very positive.”

“The next thing to jump out at me is how many changes there are to previously published plans. I have long been a vocal supporter of HS2 and was disappointed when I read the media stories that HS2 Eastern leg had been cancelled, but it turns out that the picture is more complex.

“Complex because parts of the original plan will happen, for example between the east and west midlands – but then an enhanced midland mainline would bring HS2 services to Sheffield and Leeds rather than an eastern leg of the HS2 line.

“The plan is 160 pages and has only been published a couple of hours, so the opportunity for people to read it has been very limited. I will read it in detail over this weekend.”

“Woefully inadequate”

Mr Jones’ comments were at odds with other leaders in the north of England.

Cllr Louise Griffiths, interim-chair of Transport for the North, said the new scheme proposed by government was “woefully inadequate”.

She said:

“After decades of underfunding, the rail network in the north is not fit for purpose. It is largely twin-track Victorian infrastructure trying to cope with the demands of a 21st Century economy. 

“Leaders from across the north and from across the party political divide came together to ask for a network that would upgrade the North for this century and in line with the rest of the country.

“Our statutory advice asked for an over £40 billion network but the government has decided to provide even less than half of that.”

Government response

Ministers have said a “flexible approach” is needed and the the proposals for upgrades to the Manchester to Leeds line were “ambitious”.

The government has also denied that it has not fulfilled its promise on the eastern leg of HS2 and pointed to a proposal in its Integrated Rail Plan for a study to “look at the best way to take HS2 trains to Leeds”.

Mr Shapps said that the scheme outlined by government will also bring improvements to rail infrastructure in the north earlier than the HS2 project.

He said:

“Our plans go above and beyond the initial ambitions of HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail by delivering benefits for communities no matter their size, right across the North and Midlands, up to 10 to 15 years earlier.”

Harrogate MP silent after saying scrapping HS2 would ‘betray the north’

Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones has so far remained silent on the expected scrapping of plans to extend the HS2 line from Birmingham to Leeds.

The former rail minister has been a vocal advocate of the project. In February 2019, he said that it would be a “betrayal of the north” if it did not go ahead.

However, government sources briefed national media outlets over the weekend about the decision ahead of an expected announcement on Thursday.

Just two months ago Mr Jones reiterated his support for HS2 at the annual Transport for the North conference in Leeds. He said:

“I hope that we do not see any compromise on our desire for big investment in our infrastructure. We have failed spectacularly to invest enough in our infrastructure.

“This has meant it is now too expensive and too difficult to move people and goods around the country. So I do not support the argument that we need to abandon longer term infrastructure investment.”

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At a previous Transport for the North conference in February 2019, Mr Jones went further and criticised media outlets for reporting speculation over the future of the HS2 Birmingham to Leeds line.

“We have all probably seen some media reports claiming that the northern stages of HS2 might not be built. They are nonsense.

“HS2 was conceived, developed and is now being delivered as a national railway. But in particular to improve links for our area.

“So our commitment to the full network of HS2 is undiminished. To cancel anything would be a betrayal of the north.”

The Stray Ferret asked Mr Jones for his thoughts this morning. However, he did not reply to our request for comment by the time of publication.

Contactless payments for Harrogate trains and buses to be scrapped

Plans to introduce contactless pay-as-you-go payments on train and bus services in the Harrogate district are set to be scrapped.

Transport for the North (TfN), the regional transport body for the north of England, had planned to roll out the contactless payment systems on rail, light rail and buses in Yorkshire and across the north.

TfN bosses said contactless payments were key to restoring confidence in public transport after the pandemic.

However, the organisation has now proposed scrapping the roll-out of the scheme, which is already implemented on some transport services, due to a lack of government funding.

Last month, the Department for Transport cut funding for the organisation and withdrew funding for smart travel schemes.

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In papers due before a board meeting on Thursday, Jeremy Acklam, programme director for integrated and smart travel, will recommend winding down the scheme.

In his report, he says:

“TfN have tried a variety of approaches to DfT to see if even limited funding could be made available for quick wins and we continue to have discussions with DfT’s acceleration unit to look at in-year opportunities.

“However, as yet, no funding has been secured, and any such funding if agreed would be on much more limited basis.

“Therefore, this paper seeks the board’s agreement to wind down the IST programme.”

Government officials decided last month to cut core funding to TfN from £10 million to £6 million. They also withdrew funding for contactless payment systems, of which TfN requested £33 million for the year.

At the time, Ian Craven, finance director at TfN, said the proposal fell “substantially short” of what the organisation needed for its infrastructure projects.

TfN had proposed a phased introduction of smart travel schemes, which included smart cards for season ticket holders, disruption information for bus passengers and eventually a contactless pay-as-you-go system.

Discounted smart tickets were introduced last year for passengers traveling between Harrogate and Leeds.

The tickets were designed to be flexible and gave passengers 10 unlimited travel days for the price of nine valid for six months.

It was part of the £150 million integrated and smart travel programme. The next stage was to deliver more contactless payment technology across the north.