By Tom Barton

30 Aug, 2002

Page 11

BUSINESS leaders yesterday blasted plans to close part of the main railway line between North Wales and London.

The line is expected to be closed for several months to allow belated improvements to the West Coast Main Line.

The work - to allow faster services between Glasgow and London - should have been completed earlier this year but was delayed after costs ballooned from pounds 2bn to pounds 13bn.

From the end of next year, the line between Crewe and Stafford, a key stretch of track on the Holyhead to London route, will be closed as part of the work. Diversions via Kidsgrove, Staffordshire, will extend journey times for travellers by around half an hour.

A spokesman for Railtrack, which is responsible for carrying out the developments, said the company did not know how long the work would take - but similar improvements on a parallel line from Manchester through the Potteries are due to last for up to four months.

Rob Salisbury, chair of the CBI in Wales, said he was angry at the effect the delays would have on businesses in North Wales.

'This will have a serious effect on businessmen, as it's difficult enough to get to London at the moment,' he said.

'We all have to change at Crewe 90pc of the time, because there are only three direct services to Holyhead in a day, all at inconvenient times. 'It's just an absolute nightmare. We're paying a fortune for a secondclass rail service.'

But Mark Younger, deputy secretary of the Rail Passengers' Committee Wales, yesterday gave his guarded support to the scheme.

'We do accept that work needs to be carried out on the West Coast line, but we hope that any disruptions will be well advertised and that people will know in advance that there will be a lengthening of their journey,' he said.

Richard Bowker, chairman of the Strategic Rail Authority which is leading the project, said the Authority was determined to keep disruption to a minimum.

'When completed, this massive engineering programme will bring the West Coast line up to the standard, in terms of capacity and line speed, required of a 21st Century high-speed rail link,' he said.

'It is time the industry got to grips with the challenges facing it. This programme is a good example of that.'

Transport Secretary Alastair Darling said: 'This is a line that has needed investment for some 30 or 40 years now. We are finally getting control of the costs of the project.'

He added: 'Chunks of the line will be taken out of commission totally because that will enable us to do the work more cheaply, because it is very expensive to have a series of very short stoppages.'

Virgin Trains, which will run the high-speed service when the upgrade is complete, yesterday welcomed the announcement.

'Anything that accelerates the delivery of the West Coast Main Line upgrade project is good news,' a spokesman said.

'We will do everything we can to minimise the inconvenience and to provide our customers with a seamless journey.'