Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of Network Rail's decision to pause the Ely to Soham double tracking project on the forecast maximum number of freight trains per day that could be run on the Felixstowe to Nuneaton route by the end of Control Period 5.

Network Rail has paused a small number of schemes where it makes sense to do so to avoid potentially abortive costs or planning applications, particularly where the cost estimate has increased significantly as in the case of Ely to Soham where work has identified that this project is far more complex than anticipated and so the estimated cost has more than trebled.

The Ely to Soham double tracking work is one of a number of schemes which are needed to increase the number of freight trains which can run on the Felixstowe to Nuneaton route and a lot has been completed already. Network Rail has constructed a new section of railway at Nuneaton (Nuneaton North Chord), a new 1.2km stretch of track at Ipswich (Ipswich Chord) as well as various other pieces of work to re-model, re-signal and upgrade sections of the route between Felixstowe and Nuneaton.　 On its own therefore, the Ely to Soham doubling does not affect the number of freight trains which can operate.