An economic assessment has yet to be done on the new proposed route of the HS2 line through Rotherham, recommended changes to which came "out of the blue" earlier this month.
Construction on HS2, the high speed North to South rail link that aims to provide extra capacity to handle increasing demand, will begin during this Parliament and has been given a funding envelope of £55.7 billion in 2015 prices. It should reach Birmingham in 2026 and Manchester and Leeds by 2033.
The new option proposes that HS2 services between London and Sheffield would take a spur off the new north-south high speed line and travel directly to the existing Sheffield Midland station using the existing railway line. Instead of travelling into a new station at Meadowhall, the HS2 line to Leeds would travel east of Rotherham following the M1 and M18 before heading through the Dearne Valley.
The new recommendations would cut journey times on services heading to Leeds, York and Newcastle, and would also reduce the cost of the project by around £1billion.
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Kevin Barron MP, whose constituency includes affected areas of Wales, Aston, Ulley, Thurcroft, Bramley and Hellaby, believes the plan has been poorly thought through and is worried that an economic assessment has not been done for the route before publication.
Writing to the new Transport secretary, Mr Barron said: "I have been a long time supporter of HS2 as I believed that it would bring business and investment to areas that desperately need it, however it now appears that the areas that will receive the most will be the big cities.
"We are now left with a situation where we will have my constituency and others in South Yorkshire taking all the disruption but receiving none of the benefits. This cannot be right, I would urge you to ask HS2 to re-look at the plans and reinstate Meadowhall station which is much better for South Yorkshire as a whole."
A report by KPMG in 2013 estimated that HS2 at Meadowhall could add between £0.5 billion and £0.9 billion each year to the economic output of South Yorkshire and increase output in Rotherham by as much as £272m each year. The figures represented an increase of between 2.3% and 4.8% of Rotherham's GDP (the market value of all final goods and services produced) - the eleventh highest percentage increase of all 235 UK areas in the analysis.
One key statistic from the report is that the number of people who can reasonably access employment in South Yorkshire would increase by nearly 32% as a result of investment in an HS2 station at Meadowhall.
John Healey MP, whose constituency includes affected areas of Bramley and Ravenfield, said that the HS2 decision came out of the blue. Writing to concerned residents, he added: "I was dismayed to see the surprise new proposals to drop Meadowhall as South Yorkshire's HS2 stop. Instead, HS2 favours a loop into Sheffield using existing track, with the main track running through South Yorkshire, close to the M18 and up through the Dearne. The number one purpose of this change is clearly to cut costs and I fear the so-called spur line to Sheffield is simply a sop to the city.
"Clearly we now risk seeing the new high speed line to Leeds running right through South Yorkshire but not stopping in South Yorkshire or bringing any of the potential benefits to our area."
Healey is set to meet with David Higgins, the chairman of HS2 who published the recommended changes, next week.
The areas of Rotherham expected to be affected by the new route are discussed here. An information event is planned for Aston today.
The Secretary of State for Transport is considering David Higgins' report in detail and make an announcement on the full HS2 Phase 2 route later this year.
HS2 website
Images: HS2 Ltd
Construction on HS2, the high speed North to South rail link that aims to provide extra capacity to handle increasing demand, will begin during this Parliament and has been given a funding envelope of £55.7 billion in 2015 prices. It should reach Birmingham in 2026 and Manchester and Leeds by 2033.
The new option proposes that HS2 services between London and Sheffield would take a spur off the new north-south high speed line and travel directly to the existing Sheffield Midland station using the existing railway line. Instead of travelling into a new station at Meadowhall, the HS2 line to Leeds would travel east of Rotherham following the M1 and M18 before heading through the Dearne Valley.
The new recommendations would cut journey times on services heading to Leeds, York and Newcastle, and would also reduce the cost of the project by around £1billion.
Advertisement
Kevin Barron MP, whose constituency includes affected areas of Wales, Aston, Ulley, Thurcroft, Bramley and Hellaby, believes the plan has been poorly thought through and is worried that an economic assessment has not been done for the route before publication.
Writing to the new Transport secretary, Mr Barron said: "I have been a long time supporter of HS2 as I believed that it would bring business and investment to areas that desperately need it, however it now appears that the areas that will receive the most will be the big cities.
"We are now left with a situation where we will have my constituency and others in South Yorkshire taking all the disruption but receiving none of the benefits. This cannot be right, I would urge you to ask HS2 to re-look at the plans and reinstate Meadowhall station which is much better for South Yorkshire as a whole."
A report by KPMG in 2013 estimated that HS2 at Meadowhall could add between £0.5 billion and £0.9 billion each year to the economic output of South Yorkshire and increase output in Rotherham by as much as £272m each year. The figures represented an increase of between 2.3% and 4.8% of Rotherham's GDP (the market value of all final goods and services produced) - the eleventh highest percentage increase of all 235 UK areas in the analysis.
One key statistic from the report is that the number of people who can reasonably access employment in South Yorkshire would increase by nearly 32% as a result of investment in an HS2 station at Meadowhall.
John Healey MP, whose constituency includes affected areas of Bramley and Ravenfield, said that the HS2 decision came out of the blue. Writing to concerned residents, he added: "I was dismayed to see the surprise new proposals to drop Meadowhall as South Yorkshire's HS2 stop. Instead, HS2 favours a loop into Sheffield using existing track, with the main track running through South Yorkshire, close to the M18 and up through the Dearne. The number one purpose of this change is clearly to cut costs and I fear the so-called spur line to Sheffield is simply a sop to the city.
"Clearly we now risk seeing the new high speed line to Leeds running right through South Yorkshire but not stopping in South Yorkshire or bringing any of the potential benefits to our area."
Healey is set to meet with David Higgins, the chairman of HS2 who published the recommended changes, next week.
The areas of Rotherham expected to be affected by the new route are discussed here. An information event is planned for Aston today.
The Secretary of State for Transport is considering David Higgins' report in detail and make an announcement on the full HS2 Phase 2 route later this year.
HS2 website
Images: HS2 Ltd