Press Release

NORTHERN WAY MAKES THE CASE FOR GETTING CONTAINERS ONTO RAIL

27th November 2007

The Northern Way today (November 27) revealed new research showing the market potential to get containers onto rail to and from the North’s Ports as part of the Strategic Freight Network that the Government undertook to implement  in its Rail White Paper.

Speaking at the Northern Way Summit 07 at The Sage Gateshead earlier today, Professor David Begg, Chairman of the Northern Way’s Transport Compact, announced that the market potential for rail container traffic is much higher than forecasts currently used by the Department for Transport.

The Northern Way has already helped ensure that the national Strategic Freight Network will benefit the North through earlier evidence of the growing economic role and market share of northern ports which has increased from 30% to over 34% of all UK port traffic in the last ten years.

The study published today suggests that, by 2030, future growth in demand for container traffic could require as many as 60 trains per day to and from the North’s ports across the Pennines. Up to 50 trains per day could be needed between the East Coast ports on the Humber, Tees and Tyne to and from the Midlands.

Containers are the backbone of international and maritime trade with a progressive move by the shipping companies to 9'-6" "high cube" containers. However in the North only the West Coast Main Line can currently accommodate high cube containers on standard height wagons which represent the most efficient movement of these containers.

Professor David Begg, said: “This report is based on the collective views of key decision makers in the shipping, logistics and retail industries as well as infrastructure providers and organisations involved in economic development. It suggests that the market potential for ports in the North to capture container traffic is much higher than is currently assumed by existing forecasts developed for the Department for Transport. The logistics industry also recognises that rail has an important role to play in the transportation of containers to and from the North’s ports.

“There will need to be improvements to increase the capacity of the rail network and to increase the clearance of tunnels and other structures to enable the new high cube containers to be moved by rail across the North so that rail can maximise its potential.

“Moving more containers by train from the North’s ports will be good for the economy and good for the environment. We’re now working with Network Rail to develop the detailed business case for investment in the rail network on a route by route basis to make this happen. The forecasts that we have prepared will inform this work.”

Co-funded by the Northern Way, and informed by the market assessment published today, work by Network Rail is already under way to develop the business case for improvements to a number of routes that are also identified in Network Rail's Freight Route Utilisation Strategy as candidates for gauge enhancement.  These include a trans-Pennine route and routes between the Tyne, the Tees and the Humber Ports and the West Midlands. These business cases are expected to be complete in summer next year.

Already at the Port of Liverpool, work has started to re-instate the Olive Mount Chord rail link and deliver improvements that will enable high cube containers to be moved by rail via Runcorn and via Earlestown up and down the West Coast Main Line to Scotland, the Midlands and London. This project is being co-funded by the Northern Way and is expected to be complete in 2008. The work to make the case for improvements to a route across the Pennines would enable the Port of Liverpool also to deliver high cube containers by rail into Yorkshire and the North-East.