Coalition announce £9bn investment in the railways

Details of a £9 billion investment in the railway system in England and Wales has been unveiled by the government today.

The range of schemes will reportedly include electrification of the Midland Main Line between Bedford and Sheffield.

It will include a number of projects to improve the speed and capacity of trains in the north of England.

Prime Minister David Cameron called it the "biggest modernisation of our railways since the Victorian era".

He told the BBC: "In what is the biggest modernisation of our railways since the Victorian era, this investment will mean faster journeys, more seats, better access to stations, greater freight links and a truly world-class rail network."

Transport Secretary Justine Greening said the improvements were geared towards improving the efficiency of the railways, as an alterantive to nationalisation proposed by Labour.

Talking referring to the train operating companies, she said: "Some of them make a surplus, some of them make a loss, and that’s something the taxpayers have to subsidise. I think that’s one of the reasons to look at how we can make the underlying industry work more efficiently as a whole."

For more information
www.bbc.co.uk/news