Councils call for £3bn investment in East Coast rail

The East Coast Main Line authority is seeking investment from the UK and Scottish governments, which it says will deliver a £9bn boost to the economy along the line, inluding Bassetlaw.

David Carr, ECMA chairman, said: “The East Coast is the backbone of UK plc.

“Communities served by the line contribute more than £300bn to the economy every year.”

The organisation recently presented new research to the parliaments, which found every pound spent on the line could deliver £3.33 of wider benefits.

It also concluded that if the new HS2 high-speed rail link goes ahead as planned, the economic returns could be even bigger.

Mr Carr said: “The benefits of this investment will be felt from London to Scotland, with smaller economies along the line seeing proportionally larger gains.

“Improving infrastructure will help freight customers on the line and will benefit many of the UK’s key growth industries, including biotechnology, digital and creative, finance and advanced manufacturing.”

n To download a copy of the researchers’ report, visit www.investineastcoast.co.uk.