Q1 target for publication of
It is hoped that the delayed Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) will be published in the first quarter of 2021, according to Jon Loveday, Director of Infrastructure, Enterprise and Growth at the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.
Speaking at February 4’s The future of rail infrastructure in the UK - CP6, the Integrated Rail Plan, and Delivering Modernisation virtual conference, Loveday said that in the past six months “there has been a flurry of publications - much more than normal. We are all waiting for the IRP.”
While policy is not part of its remit, Loveday said the IPA was pushing hard to connect various parts of Government, such as Ministry of Housing and the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, to work together on projects.
He said that prior to the pandemic there was a lot of ambition surrounding infrastructure investment which can be combined with decarbonisation and levelling-up agendas. But he warned that while there is the capability to deliver schemes, the country has not always been successful.
“There is a focus on speed and getting projects started early to support the recovery, but I am surprised how long projects take to get into real-life,” he said.
“If the programme is not set up correctly, we will say ‘no’. It doesn’t mean the project won’t happen, but it means it needs another look.”
Loveday warned of issues with the supply chain and that there was a critical shortfall in rail where 60,000 engineers will be needed by 2030. He also called on companies, consultants and industries to collaborate: “There’s very little sharing of data. If we cannot see that, how can we get standardisation?”
He said that while tunnels are not often built in roads and rail, they are in other sectors, so there should be collaboration to create a pipeline of work and standard practice.
Despite the warnings, Loveday said it was an encouraging time.
“There is a very strong pipeline and major schemes including HS2 and the IRP,” he said, although he added that in rail a lot of challenges remained around net zero carbon targets.