Excellent export opportunities offered from high speed rail

The UK should view high speed rail as a potential export market, according to HS Rail Industry Leaders (HSRIL).

The coalition of industry experts also believes that the commitment to build HS2 should be seen as the start of a much wider HS network across the UK, which it says would allow greater private sector investment and more efficient delivery of HS2.

“HS2 represents an unprecedented public investment, and both the industry and Government needs to work together to make sure the UK makes the most of the opportunities it creates,” said HSRIL Director Will Roberts.

“We should use it to turn high speed rail into an export product for the UK, selling the expertise to build high-speed lines around the world.”

In a response to the Industrial Strategy green paper, it was stated that maintaining common international standards post-Brexit is seen as vital to the potential export business. It was also mentioned that there should be a focus on Anglo-Scottish transport links.

HSRIL’s key points were that Government’s HS2 investment is “the most important public investment project in the UK for decades, and as such a key part of the Industrial Strategy should be to take advantage of the opportunities it affords”. The group highlights how it believes huge improvements in connectivity between many of the country’s largest cities offers the opportunity to transform regional economies and drive productivity growth. In a statement, HSRIL said: “We believe High Speed Rail is the only way to rebalance the economy and take pressure off the South East.”

In terms of export, HSRIL says the UK needs to begin to view the expertise in this country in rail and construction (and in high speed rail in particular) as a potential export sector. It suggests the creation of an HS2 International to take advantage of these opportunities, which it believes would bring HS delivery businesses and HS2 Ltd together to create a public-private partnership that could market the UK skill base and experience abroad.

Regarding Brexit, HSRIL said: “We believe that common standards are vital to opening export markets and are a key enabler of productivity. It is vital, therefore, that UK suppliers continue to contribute to the development of European and international standards, ensuring that UK manufactured products do not require extensive rework and testing for export. If standards diverge in future, non-tariff barriers will be created and manufacturers will have the unwanted cost of operating in different jurisdictions.”

HSRIL says that links between England and Scotland should be considered, and that while the goal of working to achieve three-hour journey times between London and Glasgow/Edinburgh had been agreed in spring last year, no plans have been developed.

The group suggests that in the absence of a clear plan for this target, there should be a competition to find the best value solution towards achieving the target through a major new challenge fund. HSRIL claims this “would include technical solutions and funding and financing proposals to achieve journey time and other objectives on the lengthy route between the northern limit of HS2 and the Central Belt of Scotland”.

It concluded: “We are confident that the private sector will welcome this opportunity to develop proposals.”