THE future of a proposed major rail link to Edinburgh Airport remains in
doubt after the leader of the Scottish Parliament Committee charged with
scrutinising the plans yesterday said major questions remain about its costs
and planned route.
The controversial Edinburgh Airport Rail Link (EARL), which would see lines
from across Scotland diverted through the terminal, will make it much easier
to access the airport.
However it comes at a cost of £650 million and will be the largest civil
engineering project to hit Scotland since the Forth Road Bridge, involving
the temporary re-routing of a river, tunnelling more than one and a half
miles under an active airport runway, the construction of a new low-level
station and the laying of eight miles of double-track railway.
Yesterday, the Holyrood Committee set up to scrutinise the Edinburgh Airport
Rail Link Bill and decide if the project goes ahead, heard evidence from a
number of bodies involved in the proposal.
Not only are there concerns about engineering and the cost, but overcrowding
and delays on commuter trains running through the terminal unless the rail
companies work together.
However Transport Initiatives Edinburgh (TIE), the council-owned firm
responsible for the delivery of the project, insisted the economic boost
brought by linking the whole country to the airport would make the
engineering and costs worth it. They also reassured the Edinburgh Airport
Rail Link Bill Committee new carriages will be brought in to avoid
over-crowding.
Speaking after a marathon Committee session of more than six hours Scott
Barrie, the convener of the Committee, said major questions remain over the
routing of the line under the runway and the issues of linking the new route
in with the rest of Scotland without causing delays or overcrowding.
He said MSPs cannot back the Bill until they are sure the route is the right
one and Tavish Scott, the transport minister, has reassured them the money
will be found to carry out the project.
"The main issues are that some witnesses are concerned that given the major
capital costs of this are there alternatives?," he said.
"It is too early to say yet (what the final decision of the Committee will
be). We still have to take evidence. It is certainly a complex engineering
project and we will have to give consideration on what is the best route and
what costs are the best use of public money. However, the big test will be
when the minister comes to give evidence."
Andrew Mellors, Deputy Managing Director of First ScotRail, told the
Committee extra room will be needed on trains to take the extra passengers
and their luggage, as well as commuters.
"We support the EARL project as a boost to tourism and the Scottish economy.
However, we did flag up the fact that this not just about building a new
line, we need to very carefully look at all the issues in terms of capacity,
how many trains we can run and rolling stock."
Mr Mellors also said the industry must work together to passing through the
new station will not delay commuter routes.
Jamie McGrigor, Tory MSP for the Highlands and Islands, questioned the
safety of the new route as busy junctions will be underground.
However Susan Clark, project director at TIE, said the tunnelling option has
initial approval from official inspectors. She also said new carriages would
be brought on to ensure capacity.
"The important message is that this is a Scottish project. It is not just
about linking Edinburgh to the airport it is about providing connectivity
across Scotland as means of growth," she said.
Related topic
a.. Scotland's airports
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Post by B"THE future of a proposed major rail link to Edinburgh Airport remains
in doubt after the leader of the Scottish Parliament Committee charged
with scrutinising the plans yesterday said major questions remain about
its costs and planned route."
Full article -
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=873442006
