Airport express route on cards

6:19pm Wednesday 7th January 2009

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Hopes of a high-speed rail route linking Oxford to a £4.5bn transport interchange at Heathrow airport have been boosted by Transport Minister Lord Adonis.

As well as providing direct trains to the UK’s major airport, the scheme would slash travel times by rail to European cities, with passengers able to transfer to Eurostar trains at the airport station, to be known as the Heathrow Hub.

The idea is to make Heathrow the first stop on an extended high-speed rail network for Britain, with a completion date of 2019.

The minister, a former Oxford city councillor, signalled his enthusiasm for the plan, which would see a 12-platform station built on the northern edge of the airport.

Supporters say it would help make the case for a high-speed route to the North of England, connecting at Heathrow with an extension of the Channel Tunnel rail link and serving Oxford via Reading or from a branch off a new line heading towards Birmingham along the M40 corridor.

The Conservatives have pushed the idea as an alternative to the controversial plan to create a third runway at Heathrow to expand air travel capacity. But in a surprise intervention, Lord Adonis indicated that the Government was ready to consider embracing both projects.

He said: “I think it’s an attractive idea.

“It’s vital that we have an integrated approach to planning new rail capacity and any new airport capacity that’s also required.

“It makes good sense to plan improvements to Heathrow and the rail system together.”

Engineering firm Arup’s proposals would also see trains on the Great Western main line diverted to run via Heathrow, improving access to the airport from the West of England and South Wales and raising the prospect of a major electrification programme for the line, to replace First Great Western’s ageing diesel trains.

The plan shows that in addition to being able to travel directly to Heathrow, Oxford might get a direct rail service to Euston station in London.

It is proposed that the hub scheme would be privately financed.

Keith Slater, a spokesman for Oxfordshire’s Chamber of Commerce, said: “We have an extremely good bus service between Oxford and Heathrow, but a direct rail link would be welcomed by the business community.”

Adrian Saunders, Oxfordshire County Council’s rail development officer, said: “It’s an interesting idea.It was discussed at a recent Network Rail conference that I attended. It seems to have become part of the debate about the third runway.

“But we will have to wait and see what detail comes forward.”

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