Hammond pledges £300m extra for Northern Powerhouse rail links
1 min read
Philip Hammond will today announce a £300m boost to rail links in the north of England as part of the Northern Powerhouse programme.
The scheme was the brainchild of his predecessor George Osborne, who this summer urged the Government to go further on rail investment.
The new funding is designed to speed up links between cities not directly served by the HS2 route.
It will mean shorter journey times between Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds and York.
Cities in the east Midlands such as Leicester will also benefit from the new scheme, with quicker links between HS2 and Midlands rail projects.
Mr Hammond will make the pledge in his keynote speech to the Conservative conference in Manchester this lunchtime.
He will say: "This investment will go towards ensuring HS2 infrastructure can link up with future Northern Powerhouse and Midlands rail projects - helping the towns and cities of the North reach their full potential."
ROADS
Mr Hammond is also promising another £100m to improve roads in the north, with a total of 33 new projects in the north-east, north-west and the Yorkshire and Humber region.
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