Mayor takes your rail stories to Transport Select Committee

West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin gave evidence to the Transport Select Committee on Thursday 24 February, highlighting the stories from the #TellTracy campaign.

23 February 2022

Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, today (Thursday 24 February) gave evidence to the House of Commons Transport Select Committee.

The Select Committee, which met in Leeds, is taking evidence on last year’s Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) published by the Department for Transport, which did not include funding for the full eastern leg of HS2 between Leeds and Sheffield, or Transport for the North’s recommendation for a high-speed line between Leeds, Bradford and Manchester.

Throughout February, rail users have sent in their own stories as part of the #TellTracy campaign, detailing how the rail network is making it harder to access jobs, education and leisure opportunities, due to reduced services and outdated infrastructure.

Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, said:

“I’m pleased I was able to tell the Transport Select Committee some of the stories that passengers shared with me this month. It’s important that parliamentarians can see for themselves the difficulties that local people face every day when making the most basic journeys.

“I’ve heard from someone who regularly misses out on time with their kids because the train home from work is constantly delayed.

“I’ve heard from a family who live in Mirfield where the girls go to school in Wakefield – they only get one train per hour and now, it’s a replacement bus service.

“I’ve heard from a thriving digital company which can’t get the staff because people just don’t want to commute across the Pennines, with one business partner getting home from work at 10.45pm due to delays, cancellations, and more delays.

“Over the past few weeks I’ve heard so many horror stories from regular people, and I wanted to make sure the Transport Select Committee also heard their experiences. Members of Parliament need to know how the lives of people in West Yorkshire and beyond are impacted by decision-making in London.

“Northerners shouldn’t have to accept transport schemes that might look cost effective on a spreadsheet, without any understanding of how a decent transport network will be a powerful lever that will genuinely level up across the North, opening up opportunity and access to work.”

The evidence session is available to view on the Transport Select Committee’s YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/cxP7Ux9wF_k?t=5021