With the government signalling plans to inject millions of pounds of funding into revamping the Ely junction, BETHANY WALES talks to business leaders about what this will mean for the local economy.
After a decade of business leaders campaigning for a £500m revamp of Ely junction, it looks like the government will finally pledge millions of pounds towards the project.
Although it has not yet been confirmed the rail upgrade will get the funding needed, prime minister Rishi Sunak's scrapping of the northern leg of the HS2 will see money diverted to local projects - with the junction believed to be top of the list.
East Anglian business leaders have welcomed this move.
They say that updating this key rail junction will have a “game-changing” impact on the local economy.
If the work does go ahead, it will see improvements to the junction which links five lines connecting Norwich, Ipswich, Cambridge, Peterborough and King’s Lynn - dramatically boosting rail capacity in the region.
Freight will be upped from 6.5 trains per hour to 10 – an increase of nearly a third - while passenger services on the Ely to King’s Lynn and Ipswich to Peterborough routes will be doubled - stimulating more than 200,000 additional passenger journeys annually.
And although it might be nearly 10 years before the work is finished, businesses say it will have a “game-changing” impact on our local economy.
PORT OF FELIXSTOWE
Nowhere in East Anglia is set to benefit from the junction revamp more than the Port of Felixstowe.
Currently, around half of rail freight into and out of Felixstowe travels on the direct line via Ely, while the other half travels a less direct route via London.
This has slowed down the movement of cargo in and out of the town, putting pressure on the port to find storage for an increasing quantity of goods.
The upgrades will allow 2,900 extra freight services to operate to and from the port every year - removing the equivalent of 98,000 lorry journeys from the road annually and reducing the amount of onsite storage needed.
James Palmer, chairman of business advocacy group Eastern Powerhouse, said: “The bottleneck costs the port productivity, which ultimately becomes a financial issue.
“These freight trains are ¾ km long, so if you're going to have six more a day then that’s a huge amount of freight that can be moved.
“The idea if you’re a port is to get things in and out as efficiently as possible, so the quicker that can happen the more beneficial that will be for the Port of Felixstowe.”
Steve Beel from Freeport East, which covers the ports of Felixstowe and Harwich, agreed, and added: “Ely currently adds costs and carbon to every single container being moved out of the UK”.
“Shipping is an international business and if the UK is not competitive we will lose out to Rotterdam and other European ports, adding time and cost to businesses and risking skilled jobs.”
SUPPORTING INNOVATION
Businesses based at commercial development sites across Norfolk and Suffolk’s enterprise zones are also set to benefit from the work.
The Space to Innovate Enterprise Zone has 10 sites across Norfolk and Suffolk, and is expected to create 18,500 new jobs over the next 25 years in high-skilled sectors like food and agri-tech, life sciences and health.
Six of these sites are in towns served by the Ipswich Peterborough corridor, including Futura Park and Waterfront Island in Ipswich, and will directly benefit from increased passenger services between the two points.
Norwich Research Park, based at the University of East Anglia, will also benefit from better rail connections with Cambridgeshire, making it easier for people to commute to the park, and, as a result, encourage more companies to see Norwich as a viable head quarter.
Paul Simon, head of communications at Suffolk Chamber of Commerce, said: “Investing in our rail network is something of a no-brainer with estimates suggesting that for every £1 spent on construction, nearly £5 would be generated for the economy and wider society.
“If the scheme is fully realised, this would strategically serve to achieve two key goals: integrate the economy of the eastern region more fully into that of the country as a whole and act as a magnet for further inward investment from companies keen to be located within a region pivotal to both national and international business opportunities.”
C-J Green, chairman of New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), added: "This is absolutely brilliant news, not just for rail passengers in Norfolk and Suffolk, but the whole economy.
“These long-awaited improvements to the pivotal Ely junction promise to make our region a more attractive proposition to investors.
“These game-changing schemes will also cut journey times for commuters and other passengers and help reduce congestion on our busy road network, supporting our ambitions for clean growth."
SIZEWELL C
As well as benefits for existing businesses, there are hopes that the Ely junction revamp will be ready in time to support the ongoing construction of the Sizewell C nuclear plant.
EDF, which is delivering the project, estimates it will take up to 700 lorry journeys a day to transport construction materials from the Port of Felixstowe to Sizewell.
This not only has the potential to push up costs, but could also place further strain on roads such as the A14.
However, improved freight capacity created by improving Ely junction could help mitigate this problem - if the work is ready in time.
Current estimates by industry sources suggest it is unrealistic to expect the Ely work to be completed within five years, and that it could be the early 2030s before it is finished.
ANALYSIS: WILL THE REVAMP GO AHEAD?
The long-awaited revamp of Ely junction was confirmed by the government after prime minister Rishi Sunak scrapped plans for the northern leg of the HS2 rail line last week.
He vowed to pour the £36bn saved from his U-turn into a variety of local transport schemes - including here in East Anglia.
But a 40-page government document listing possible projects was later found to be riddled with errors.
Some promises in the 'Network North' plan - which includes schemes across the south and midlands, as well as the north - have also since been watered down or deleted entirely.
When grilled on whether the promised work would go ahead, the prime minister admitted that some of the projects listed were “illustrative”.
Steve Morphew, Labour group leader at Norfolk County Council, said: "‘Announcing projects Mr Sunak knew couldn’t be delivered before a general election felt desperate and cynical.
"Backtracking, confusion and treating crucial infrastructure schemes as chips thrown on a roulette wheel and moved around as he gambles on different selections he hopes is more likely to help in an election is a new level of reckless incompetence."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here