News that Labour’s Welsh Government has cut the construction of a second rail track between Wrexham and Gresford from the plan to lay a second railway line to Chester was challenged in the Assembly yesterday by North Wales Liberal Democrat Assembly Member, Aled Roberts.
“I asked the Government Business Minister and Wrexham AM, Lesley Griffiths, to explain this apparent U-turn,” explained Aled Roberts. “When the Transport Minister announced on October 2nd that she had agreed a ‘£44 million scheme with Network Rail’ explaining that it would “improve north-south journey times and links with Wrexham”, everyone assumed that she was backing the original Network Rail Scheme.
“But it now appears that Labour’s Welsh Government demanded that Network Rail produce a second scheme that left out doubling the rail track between Wrexham and Gresford and this was the one that was announced to great fanfare. Indeed I was one of those who warmly welcomed the announcement.
“Today the Business Minister agreed to provide me with a statement as to the nature of the new Network Rail scheme. I also asked that the statement confirm whether an assessment has been made showing how the revisions to the Network Rail plan will affect rail passenger capacity at Wrexham and connectivity with London and Manchester.
“My reason for the question was simple. The effect of this U-turn is to reduce by half the number of trains that will be able to use the Wrexham to Chester line with the inevitable consequence of congestion in the future when the new prison opens generating an extra 1000 passengers a week – an increase of around 17%. It will make it less likely that there will be direct services to the North West of England and Wrexham will not be able to benefit fully from the electrification of the North Wales Coast Line.
“There are a number of further questions I would like to ask Government Ministers. How much has been saved by cutting this second rail track between Wrexham and Gresford? Could the costs of building an extra line at a later date be up to treble what it would be now? Who was consulted about this change? Certainly not myself or the other AMs who represent the area covered by this line, including the Business Minister who was quoted saying that “increasing the capacity of the line between Wrexham and Chester is hugely important to North Wales’. Has Wrexham Council been consulted? Did North Wales’ Regional Transport Planners Taith know about this change?
“Wrexham could be condemned to years of rail congestion and delays if the Welsh Government does not reverse this U-turn and adopt the original Network Rail plan. Not only must we consider the rising number of passengers visiting the prison, there is also the issue of the increasing number of freight trains that are using this line, particularly to the Kronospan factory in Chirk. And then there are the ageing trains themselves – if they break down on this single track it could cause a day of cancelled trains.
“While Labour’s Welsh Government saves a few million in North East Wales it is worth noting that during this year in South Wales Labour have spent £52 million on buying Cardiff Airport, £46 million on redoubling a railway line that runs through the Transport Ministers constituency and £5 million on a brand new station at Energlyn. So where will the money saved on not doubling part of the Wrexham to Chester line be spent? I hope in North Wales, but don’t hold your breath!”
