THE north of England needs between £100 billion and £120 billion investment for better, faster train services and a dualling of the A64, the Ryedale MP has said.

A newly-published strategic transport plan by the group Transport for the North includes a request for between £100 billion and £120 billion to be committed over the next 30 years.

Transport for the North (TfN) is a statutory body that includes elected and business leaders from across the whole of the north of England, representing the region’s 15 million citizens.

Its aim is to take a “pan-Northern view” and to encourage trade and investment by improving links to the North’s ports and airports and faster links between the major towns and cities.

The TfN document is a formalised plan for spending following a call to the Chancellor last July from 82 northern parliamentarians about a need for more money.

Kevin Hollinrake, who is MP for Thirsk and Malton and co-chairman of the Northern Powerhouse all-party parliamentary group, said: “Northern Powerhouse MPs last year called on the Treasury to inject substantially more money into Northern transport improvements, and I am delighted that the Transport for the North Strategic Transport Plan defines the specific improvements needed in the key growth corridors which will unlock higher-paid employment opportunities.

“Specifically, in North Yorkshire, these include new and refurbished rolling stock and more frequent services on the TransPennine Express; the much-needed dual carriageway on the A64 between Hopgrove and Barton Hill; improvements to the A19 and the York Outer ring road and, in the longer term, the provision of high speed rail services across the North to the rest of the UK.”

Read the full report at transportforthenorth.com.