Brexit: and the railways in the South West

The Roads minister was in Devon this week - to talk about rail, but at the wrong railway station:
Wrong Minister at wrong station, even though he stayed at a hotel directly opposite the right station in Exeter! | East Devon Watch

Looking at the bigger picture, this doesn't look too good:
Railway schemes could fall victim to Brexit | News | The Times & The Sunday Times

This is despite a local MP talking up the future of rail:


Right tools essential to success for South West after Brexit, says Devon MP

Infrastructure, physical and digital, is the key to progress, writes MP Gary Streeter

Jon Bayley Content Editor 29 NOV 2017

Conservative MP Gary Streeter (Image: John Allen)

When the rail link was washed away at Dawlish in those 2014 storms it released a wave of pent-up anger and frustration at the state of our Victorian railways that has produced real action.

The Peninsula Rail Task Force, encouraged by the then Prime Minister, became more focused on producing a 20-year plan that delivered the modern rail infrastructure we need. That plan was delivered to government last November and has been well received. Millions has been poured into making the Dawlish part of our rail link more resilient. Millions more is about to be spent on making that iconic part of the journey more stable.

Signalling and track upgrading is taking place throughout the network. We will be getting new trains throughout the course of 2018 which will deliver an increased capacity of around 25%. A new timetable will schedule more fast trains to London and back. The 20-year plan includes re-opening the Okehampton link and this is being seriously considered.

READ MORE
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But we want more, much more – especially when we see the money being poured into HS2. Much of this focus is on getting our asks into the Network Rail next spending round which starts in 2019 and rejoices in the title: Control Period 6.

In the meantime, we are urgently seeking money to carry out a study into discrete electrification – this is where the new bi-modal trains (both diesel and electric) can lift their gantry at the approach to a Devon hill and increase speed going up it, instead of relying on just diesel as now. The Government is actively looking at it.

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Great Western rail franchise could be split up and new line launched



New ways of tackling on-board connectivity are being trialled in Scotland and if successful could be used to deliver consistent Wi-Fi and mobile phone connectivity on our trains before too long. Business leaders have told us this is their priority. So years of under investment in rail are beginning to be addressed and we will see significant improvements over the next few years.

On roads, the Government understands that having just one major arterial road into our region is inadequate. Resources have now been dedicated to tackling the worst bottleneck on the A303, by commencing work on tunnelling around Stonehenge. Plans to dual this major route all the way into our region are being progressed, even though there remains controversy and opposition to dualling all the way to Honiton (which I strongly support).

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Plymouth’s new ‘bullet train’ has had a really, really bad first day

That battle continues. The M5 from Bristol to Taunton is becoming a major problem during eight months of the year, especially on Fridays, and discussions are under way about the possibility of adding an extra lane to that section of the motorway. The A30 from Exeter into Cornwall continues to receive attention and it is essential that this busy road must become a dual carriageway through Cornwall at the earliest opportunity.

Some are calling for the A38 from Exeter to Plymouth to become a motorway. This was actively reviewed in the 1990s when it was upgraded to the Devon Expressway. Given other priorities I cannot see this happening soon.

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The 75mph upgrade which could improve train journeys to Plymouth

The real sea change since I was first elected is the arrival of digital connectivity. In 1992 we did not have the internet, mobile phones or e-mails, so the only kind of connectivity we were talking about was physical. The arrival of this new form of communication is a game-changer, especially for far-flung places like ours. The internet is transforming our region. Now that people can do almost anything from almost anywhere, it is possible for the brightest and the best to live and work in the Great South West. Global connectivity.]



That is why the roll-out of superfast broadband is even more important in our region than many, and why, paradoxically, our focus on other forms of infrastructure might be overtaken by events. Right now 94% of our households have superfast broadband, approaching the initial target of 95% by the end of this year. Much of our region enjoys 4G although there remain some stubborn not-spots. Because of the advances in digital technology this ball will never stop rolling. We need 5G as soon as possible and even faster superfast broadband.

READ MORE
Hundreds pledge to #BackTheSouthWest at South West Growth Summit

We are leaving the EU in March 2019, with transitional arrangements likely to be completed by the spring of 2021. After that we will have an election within 12 months. The race is on amongst the political classes to define and describe what post-Brexit Britain will look like. There are likely to be two very different models on offer.

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Our vision is likely to be about releasing the talents of the British people with the Government focusing on delivering infrastructure to allow this to happen. World-class universities and schools, a modern health system, first-class road and rail services, and above all digital connectivity. This agenda will serve our region well. The people of the Great South West have the creativity and talent to make a success of post-Brexit Britain. But we need the government to give us the tools (infrastructure) to get the job done.

Gary Streeter is the Conservative MP for South West Devon

Right tools essential to success for South West after Brexit, says Devon MP - Jon Bayley - Plymouth Herald
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