Civil Engineers warn of 'rail gridlock' in Manchester
The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) North West has warned that unless improvements are made to Manchester's commuter train services it will quickly become overloaded.
The ICE, the national organisation for those studying or working in civil engineering professions, says that investment in public rail way must be given top priority or it will become a major problem for the region. The organisation believes that engineers and construction workers should be put to work as soon as possible to maintain and improve the region's rail system.
Its North West regional director, Alan Butler, said that investment was critical to both meeting the UK's ambitious carbon targets and sustaining economic development in the area.
“Not only is it threatening to force travellers off trains and into cars, which would drive up our carbon footprint and negatively impact the UK’s goals of lowering emissions, but it will stifle economic growth and impact on our quality of life,” he said.
“We urgently need a radical capacity upgrade and the ICE is fully backing Northern Way’s ambitious project to deliver this. The Manchester Hub must be at the heart of any overhaul and it is essential that we avoid unnecessary delays in addressing this.”
ICE North West has said that improving capacity on the Manchester Hub will offer several improvements to the economic health of the region. The city's major stations are described by the ICE as the "most significant rail nucleus in the North of England".
By improving commuter access, making freight access to international markets easier, and allowing for faster and more frequent journeys to neighbouring regions, improvements to the rail infrastructure could help close the £30bn annual productivity gap between the north and south.