Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury rail electrification plan could go before ministers 'by summer'
Proposals to electrify the railway line between Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury could be considered by the Government within weeks, a minister has said.
Transport minister Wendy Morton told Shrewsbury and Atcham MP Daniel Kawczynski that she hoped a study on the costs and benefits of the scheme would be ready by the summer.
During a debate in the House of Commons, Mr Kawczynski asked Mrs Morton if the scheme would be delivered in the current parliament.
Mrs Morton, who is MP for Aldridge-Brownhills, said the regional transport body Midlands Connect was drawing up a set of proposals to improve journey times between Birmingham and Shrewsbury.
"When completed, the outputs of this work will be presented in a strategic outline business case, which I hope to receive this summer," she said.
"The business case will provide an assessment of delivery timescales, costs, and benefits of the scheme, and the department will make a formal assessment of the proposals upon receipt of the business case."
Mr Kawczynski had also pressed another transport minister, Andrew Stephenson, on the matter.
Mr Kawczynski said told Mr Stephenson that future transport links had to be "sustainable and green".
"I have certainly promised the young electorate in Shrewsbury to campaign to reduce CO2 emissions," he told the Commons.
"We are working very hard to secure the electrification of the line between Shrewsbury and our regional capital of Birmingham."
He asked Mr Stephenson to take an interest in the project.
"It is very important that Shrewsbury is served by trains that are not diesel and we are reducing CO2 emissions."
Mr Stephenson said the Government had a programme of increasing the number of electrified railway lines across the UK.
"We have a good record over the past 11 years on electrification, but we want to go further and faster as we decarbonise the railways across the UK," he said.
Electrification of the line would also mean faster, cleaner services for Telford, Albrighton, Codsall and Cosford which are also served by the line.
