BR spreads the Chunnel cake
Page 17
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• Railfreight is to change its strategy in the Chunnel offensive against road transport.
The British Rail subsidiary had intended to operate a single freight terminal at Willesden. This had brought criticism that the terminal would not have the capacity to meet demand for freight travelling by rail through the Channel tunnel.
However, Ian Brown, the newly-appointed Rai'freight managing director, has unveiled plans to establish seven regional freight terminals. Agreement on the first, a £60 million establishment in Leeds, has already been reached with Leeds City Council, Bovis and Mountleigh.
A further six regional freight terminals will be built, at Strathclyde, Liverpool, Man
chester, Birmingham, a second Midlands site, and a site in Wales, probably at Cardiff or Swansea.
Brown hopes the proposals will allay criticism that rail for the Channel Tunnel focuses too strongly on the South East. He says: "This is a once-in-alifetime opportunity for the railways and Willesden is not a saleable alternative."