A government rail Minister says it's "vitally important" that HS2 trains are able to reach Leeds even if the controversial high speed rail route never gets to the city.
Andrew Stephenson, who has responsibility for the high speed project linking London with the North and Midlands, said he was "committed to bringing" HS2 trains to Leeds and Sheffield.
Both cities were originally on HS2's Eastern Leg but the Government's controversial Integrated Rail Plan removed them both from the route as the scheme was scaled back, partly to save money.
Instead HS2 will go to Nottingham and Derby from Birmingham but trains going north to Sheffield will run on upgraded tracks rather than a new route as originally promised.
HS2 will not reach Leeds under the current plans but the Government is spending £100m on a report to look at how it could potentially come to the city and how it would interact with the long-awaited mass transit system.
Mr Stephenson, speaking to The Northern Agenda political newsletter on a visit to the Department for Transport's base in Leeds, said he was "very keen to get on with the study as soon as possible".
He said: "We've got to work with local stakeholders on that, but I'm hoping to give confirmation to local stakeholders as soon as I can, as to how we're going to progress that study.
"I think that's really important. People waited a long time for the Integrated Rail Plan. We don't want them to wait longer for the outcome of a study, the government is committed to bringing HS2 trains to Leeds. We've got to now look at that, we've got to look at the best way we're going to do that.
"The existing plans as they were on the table before were whether we can do a mixture of upgrades and new lines or just upgrades, however we do that, but we've got to keep that piece of work getting underway soon and be able to give confidence to people about what the solution is going to be."
The scrapping of the plan to bring HS2 to Leeds sparked fury among many political and business leaders, though was welcomed by some in West and South Yorkshire who believed they would see little benefit from the project.
Last month the New Civil Engineer reported that the government axed the Eastern leg to Leeds despite commissioning a report which warned that the alternatives would not serve the North or deliver the benefits promised. The option chosen would cost less than a third of the £32bn price of the proposed HS2 eastern leg.
Asked if there was still a good chance that HS2 trains, if not the route itself, would come to Leeds, Mr Stephenson said: "Definitely. I think it's vitally important that HS2 trains do come to Leeds."
He added: "I think we've got to look at what is the best way of achieving that, what is the best way of connecting up West Yorkshire and connecting up the rest of the country. I think if you look at the Integrated Rail Plan, for example, getting HS2 trains direct into the centre of Nottingham and Derby, something that wasn't going to happen under the previous plans. I think that's a great gain for the East Midlands.
"But you've got to then think how do those trains go on to Sheffield, how do they go on to Leeds, how do we ensure that we are delivering high speed rail services into West Yorkshire. I'm committed to bringing those services here.
"There is a debate about whether it should be the existing Eastern leg as proposed with all the disruption that would have caused, all the environmental damage potentially that brand new line would have cost and lots of line. MPs are very concerned about or whether we can deliver similar kind of services and benefits and capacity improvements by a mixture of upgrading existing lines.
"So that's what the £100million is about, it's saying how is the best way to do that? And also, how do we sort out the capacity challenge at Leeds station because we've got to sort out the capacity challenges at Leeds station, if we're going to bring the services here because at the moment, as we all know, it's bursting at the seams. And how is that going to be resolved.
"Obviously, in places like Manchester, the introduction of the Metrolink and mass transit system reduce the pressure on Manchester Piccadilly and freed up capacity at the station. Will the introduction of a mass transit system here do the same for Leeds station or not?
"It's the kind of thing we've got to look at because the old plans for HS2, the all brand new Eastern leg which would taken decades to construct but also required a brand new station, which again was controversial with many stakeholders because while some saw big regeneration opportunities, others saw massive disruption, businesses having to relocate, lots and lots of construction work in the city centre.
"Again, this is a booming city, it's already got lots of impact on local residents. There were people who again saw disadvantages to the existing plan."
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