East-West Rail Link

(asked on 26th June 2019) - View Source

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on the level of greenhouse gas emissions of the decision to exclude electrification from the scope of the Western Phase of the East West Rail project.


Answered by
Andrew Jones Portrait
Andrew Jones
This question was answered on 1st July 2019

The publicly available Environmental Statement which was prepared as part of the TWAO for the Western Section, includes a robust assessment of emissions from diesel trains during the operation of the Order Scheme, as well as construction and operational road traffic emissions.

Passive provision for electrification is being provided in the construction of the Western Section allowing electrification to be implemented in the future should it represent good value for money.

The East West Railway Company is continuing to work with government and other agencies to explore options for a local natural capital plan for the Oxford-Cambridge Arc as a whole, and to support the Government’s 25 year Environment Plan.

Reticulating Splines