UK: The National Audit Office has launched an investigation into the East West Rail project to develop a rail corridor between Oxford and Cambridge.
Passenger services on the reopened route from Oxford to Bletchley and Milton Keynes are now expected to begin by 2025, and a preferred route for the Bedford – Cambridge section (which would require new construction) was announced in May.
The investigation will examine:
- how the context for the EWR project has changed over time;
- the Department for Transport’s assessments of the economic and strategic case;
- cross-government working to plan and deliver the intended outcomes — the NAO said that although EWR was a transport project, the intended benefits were much wider, including facilitating the creation of new housing to support growth in the region.
The NAO’s report into its findings is likely to be published by the end of the year.
Local opposition
The NAO undertakes its investigations in response to external suggestions. An investigation into East West Rail was proposed by Conservative MP for North East Bedfordshire Richard Fuller, who has been a strong critic of the project. He explained that he had called on the NAO ‘to look into the flawed business case’.
After Rail Minister Huw Merriman met local politicians on October 26, Fuller emphasised that the project faced local opposition and claimed that the railway would cause ‘devastation’ to the countryside.
Fuller said ‘the way the project had been handled by the East West Rail Co had caused a lack of trust’, adding that ‘the recent allegations about the management of HS2 have reduced that further’. He would ‘continue to push the argument that better, greener alternatives exist to deliver the growth that EWR purports to enable’.
Commenting on the NAO investigation, a Department for Transport spokesperson said ‘East West Rail will serve as a catalyst for growth across the Oxford – Cambridge region by boosting local economies and bringing communities closer to job opportunities, families and friends.’
