The July 2025 Government Road and Rail Investment announcements

Link to the announcement

On the positive side, there is some genuinely welcome news for rail. Funding has been confirmed for a number of long-awaited projects, including new stations at Wellington in Somerset, Cullompton in Devon, and Haxby near York.

The long-overdue reopening of the line to Portishead has also been given Government support, meaning the town is a step closer to a restored connection to the national rail network after decades of campaigning. This reconnection will provide a vital link for residents and businesses alike, as supported by Our 2050 Vision. Additional capacity into Oxford station has been committed, which will support future ambitions for East West Rail and the Cowley Branch Line.

Significant allocations have also been made to major schemes, including £3.5 billion towards the TransPennine Route Upgrade (TRU) and £2.5 billion to secure East West Rail all the way through to Cambridge. Funding to progress Midlands Rail Hub (MRH) West, is also very welcome.

These schemes will make a tangible difference to communities and the economy, as well as reducing car dependency and carbon emissions if delivered effectively and in full.

That all being said, we are deeply concerned by the volume of road-building projects included in this package. Major schemes such as the A66 North Trans-Pennine upgrade, M60 Simister Island, and the Lower Thames Crossing, represent a continuation of a car-led approach to transport planning that undermines the UK’s climate commitments.

The Lower Thames Crossing in particular – to which £590 million has been allocated, a sum greater than the entire (now scrapped) Restoring Your Railway fund – is highly damaging and has been strongly opposed by our friends at Transport Action Network. Their work highlights the environmental harm and strategic flaws inherent in the scheme.

We also stand with industry, regional and national stakeholders in strongly condemning the indefinite pausing of the Midland Main Line electrification (MMLe). This project is absolutely critical to delivering greener and more reliable journeys for major communities and settlements along the route.

Pausing the scheme will not only delay the decarbonisation agenda in the region and nationally but will almost certainly increase costs in the long term as inflation and inefficiencies mount. Repeated stop-start decision-making on major projects (see also HS2) undermines confidence in the industry and risks the skills base needed to deliver these vital upgrades. Communities across the East Midlands, South Yorkshire and beyond deserve better than ongoing uncertainty.

While there are aspects to welcome, the overwhelming focus on new road capacity risks locking in car dependency for generations. As always, we urge the government to rebalance its priorities by committing additional funding to rail, bus and active travel schemes supporting not only our people but also our planet.