Northern leaders are so dismayed by the government’s “deeply flawed” revisions to the Northern Powerhouse Rail project that they have promised to pay for it to be done properly.
Mayors, council leaders and transport bosses from northern regions expressed anger at the Integrated Rail Plan, which included proposals to shelve a new high-speed line from Manchester to Leeds via Bradford, and a stretch from Liverpool to Warrington.
The eastern leg of HS2, from the West Midlands to Leeds, was also axed.
At a Transport for the North meeting in Leeds, Manchester mayor Andy Burnham said that contributions towards the cost of improvements, including completing the Northern Powerhouse Rail network, could be gleaned from rising land values.
