Transport secretary Andrew Adonis has revealed plans for the development of a 335-mile (539km) high speed rail network linking London with the north of England.

Trains are set to travel at up to 250mph (402kmph) along the initial core rail network, which is set to cost around £30bn and aims to reduce travel times between London and the West Midlands to 30 minutes. Journey times from the capital to Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield will also be reduced to 75 minutes under the proposals, which includes connections to existing tracks providing services to Glasgow, Edinburgh and Newcastle.

Full consultation on government recommendations for the High Speed Two (HS2) route between London and Birmingham is expected to get underway in the autumn, which includes plans to rebuild London Euston station. A new Birmingham city Centre station will be built at Fazeley/Curzon Street under the proposals, while connections to the Great Western main line and Heathrow Airport in London, and Birmingham Airport and the NEC are also planned.

Adonis said: "The time has come for Britain to plan seriously for high speed rail between our major cities. The high speed line from London to the Channel Tunnel has been a clear success, and many European and Asian countries now have extensive and successful high speed networks." Image: Network Rail