Fast rail hub plan for Heathrow

An expanded Heathrow airport could be at the heart of a new high-speed rail system, with fast links to the north of England and the rest of Europe through the Channel Tunnel, under plans being drawn up by ministers.

Gordon Brown is expected this month to approve a new third runway at Heathrow, but ministers will try to limit the environmental and political fallout of the decision by proposing improved rail links to the airport.

Andrew Adonis, transport minister, believes a new rail hub would sharply cut the number of air passengers travelling to Heathrow by car, which he says is largely responsible for pollution in the area. He points to figures showing that only 38 per cent of Heathrow passengers in 2007 used public transport to get to the airport.

“I think that is an attractive idea,” he told the Sunday Times. “It’s vital that we have an integrated approach to planning new rail capacity and any new airport capacity that is also required.”

Lord Adonis has held talks with Arup, the civil engineering consultants, who have drawn up detailed proposals for a Heathrow rail hub, and is said to look favourably on their concept.

Under the Arup plan, which it says could be delivered for less than £10bn, a Heathrow international station would the first stop on a north-south high-speed line, connected through a series of tunnels with the existing link to the Channel Tunnel at London’s St Pancras station. Lord Adonis is also considering a potentially cheaper option where the new Heathrow station might be built on a spur of a proposed 200mph bullet train line from London to Manchester.

The new station would also provide access to the existing Great Western main line to Wales, the west and south-west and connect with the new Crossrail service to the City and beyond.

Gordon Brown said last month that the government was drawing up ambitious plans for transport infrastructure to bolster Britain’s competitiveness once the recession is over. But ministers admit the Treasury will take some convincing that such schemes are financially sustainable. Public spending until 2015 is facing a tight squeeze as the government tries to map out a route to sustainable public finances.

Lord Adonis told the Financial Times last week he would expect business and local councils to help pay for the proposed line from London to Manchester.

He would expect companies benefiting from the Heathrow hub plan to make similar contributions. BAA, Heathrow’s owner, would be the most obvious beneficiary.

The Conservatives also support the idea of a Heathrow high-speed rail link. They argue that it would allow air passengers to cities such as Manchester and Leeds to complete their journey by rail, removing the need for a third runway.

But BAA argues that this is a “false choice”. Last year it said: “Even if every flight from Manchester and Leeds/Bradford was replaced by a high-speed rail line then Heathrow would still be operating at 97 per cent capacity.”