Mayor Criticises High Speed Rail Plans

3 July 2011, 13:12 | Updated: 3 July 2011, 13:18

The Mayor's criticised £30bn plans to build a new rail line between London and the north.

Boris Johnson's worried it could double the number of passengers arriving at Euston Station each morning, wanting to use the Tube.  He says he can't back the proposals without a commitment from government to increase capacity on the Tube to carry them to their destination.

The Mayor also wants all of the proposed line in London to be routed through tunnels, even though this will add massively to the £30bn estimated cost of the project.  His comments come in a letter to anti-HS2 campaigner Jerry Marshall, obtained by the Sunday Telegraph.

The Mayor wrote: "While I have expressed support for a high speed rail network in the past (and continue to support it in principle) my support is conditional on a number of specific criteria and on the need to make the new railway work well for London.

"The proposal now being consulted on does not reflect these conditions and is inadequate for a number of reasons."

The government say a new high speed rail line is needed to keep Britain's economy competitive in the twenty first century, and discourage people from flying between London and Scotland.