Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced that several projects financed by the Restoring your Railway (RYR) Fund will be terminated as part of a string of Government cuts.
The Chancellor said that a spending audit had revealed that £800 million worth of transport projects committed for next year were currently unfunded, stating: “If we cannot afford it, we cannot do it.”
She confirmed that Transport Secretary Louise Haigh will review all of the commitments and cancel any unaffordable projects, including the RYR Fund.
Boris Johnson’s Conservative Government introduced the RYR Fund in January 2020, pledging £500 million to deliver on its manifesto commitment to reopen, enhance or build new lines and stations as part of the levelling-up agenda.
However, projects across the country which were set to RYR funding but have not yet begun will now be cancelled.
One local council, though, has already confirmed its intention to press ahead with existing plans.
North Somerset Council has reaffirmed its commitment to reopening the Portishead to Bristol line. The line closed in the 1960s, but in November 2022 a proposed reopening was given the green light by ministers, with new stations in Portishead and Pill connecting 50,000 people to the national rail network.
Councillor Mike Bell, Leader of North Somerset Council and Executive Member for Major Projects, said: “The Portishead to Bristol rail line is a hugely important scheme for us and one that will make a significant difference to the lives of local people, both now and in the future.
“We remain absolutely committed to reopening the line and Network Rail were shortly due to submit our Full Business Case to the Department for Transport. Full Business Case approval is the final step needed before we can get spades in the ground for construction.”
The Portishead-Bristol line was the first passenger scheme in the country to secure a Development Consent Order to re-open a branch line and has already secured £15.5m in funding from the Department for Transport, while pledging the council has pledged a further £10m.
The Mayor continued: “This is a shovel-ready scheme that we can deliver – and for which on-the-ground preparatory work has already begun. We just need government support to make it happen.
“We will continue to … do everything we can to secure support from the Department for Transport.”
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