SPT News
SPT's chief executive urges MSPs to "be bold" when considering options for high speed rail transport.
Bold approach to high speed rail urged
November 12, 2008 00:00 UK NewsSPT's chief executive has urged MSPs to "be bold" when considering options for high speed rail transport.
Ron Culley made a strong case for High-Speed Ground Transport (HSGT) to the Scottish Parliament's Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change Committee.
He called for a link from Scotland to London and from Glasgow to Edinburgh as part of the committee's investigation into high speed rail services.
Mr Culley urged the Scottish Government to be bold in its decision-making because the technology could provide huge benefits for the Scottish economy.
He said: "The rail industry is inherently cautious because of the safety-critical nature of operations but I would urge decision-makers to be brave, this could have huge potential for Scotland.
"Building transport links is one of the most effective ways of growing the economies of Glasgow and Edinburgh.
"A journey from London to Glasgow and Edinburgh in under three hours would further strengthen links with the rest of the UK and help re-balance the British economy."
Climate change was also cited as a key factor when considering the system.
Mr Culley said that it would be difficult to ignore the positive and significant environmental benefits of HSGT.
He said: "Emissions per Eurostar passenger are 10% of those who travel by air and all journeys are now carbon neutral."
Responding to a suggestion that SPT was being overly ambitious, the chief executive said: "I'm sure there was a time when a man stood on a beach in Panama and looked at the towering mountains and said… 'we should build a canal'. In the same way high speed travel is a big opportunity for us and shouldn't be missed."
SPT's Regional Transport Strategy, approved by the Partnership in March 2007, calls for High Speed Ground Transport connections between Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Delegates from SPT visited one fast link system - Maglev - in Shanghai in 2007 and this has prompted media interest and debate since then.
Results of SPT-commissioned research looking at more technical and economic detail on HSGT will be published next year.
The makers of the Maglev system claim the technology could create a 15-minute journey between Edinburgh and Glasgow on trains that travel at up to 300mph.
Maglev trains have been in use in China since 2004 and operate through 'magnetic levitation', reaching speeds of up to 311mph.
That would potentially deliver a journey time from Glasgow to Haymarket of 15 minutes, according to Ultraspeed, the company which promotes Maglev in the UK.
The trains work by levitating before departure so that they float 1cm above the railway on an electro-magnetic cushion. A rolling wave of electricity then propels the Maglev to 125mph just one minute after departure.
