UK Rail Should be Prioritised over Air Travel

26.06.2008 (10:58)

Boosting UK high-speed rail lines could become a new focus as ministers are urged to scrap plans to invest in Heathrow Airport.

The government is currently planning a third runway at the London airport but a study for the country's biggest transport union, the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT), says thousands of jobs would be created and pollution would fall if rail was prioritised instead, Railway Technology reports.

The report says over a third of flights from Heathrow are short-haul, more than 20% go to destinations already served by a viable rail alternative, and one in five more are to places where rail is a potential alternative.

It also warns the UK is in danger of being left behind as countries like Spain benefit from rail investment.

RMT leader Bob Crow said: "This report shows that high-speed rail can provide a win-win solution for the economy and the environment."

But the Department for Transport told the BBC that "some people will need to fly because they are using Heathrow as a connection to another country".
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