The Prime Minister announced his backing for the Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) project at his Conservative Party conference speech - but provided no further detail on the Government's plans.
Boris Johnson said transport was "one of the supreme leveller-uppers" and that the Government will "do Northern Powerhouse Rail". He also said they plan to "link up the cities of the Midlands and the North" during his speech on Wednesday.
Reaction to the PM's speech in Manchester from industry bodies has been mixed - with the project's mention being welcomed, but disappointment at the lack of further substance.
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The Civil Engineering Contractors Association tweeted: "It was disappointing not to get any significant clarity on future planned investment.
"We welcome the PM's mention of Northern Powerhouse Rail but industry will be looking to the Spending Review and Integrated Rail Plan for real certainty on future investment."
The NPR project hopes to link the coasts of the North West and North East with a direct rail link from Liverpool to Hull and Newcastle.
Tim Wood, Transport for the North’s director of Northern Powerhouse Rail, said: “It was good to hear the Prime Minister say that the greatest challenge for the country was levelling up its economy and its society and that building Northern Powerhouse Rail was central to that.
"Like us, he recognised that poor rail links across the North are contributing to the national imbalance in our economy and called transport 'the supreme leveller-upper'.
“We need now to move at pace to make this NPR a reality. We stand ready to work with the Government to deliver for the North and for the whole country.
“We have worked collaboratively with the Government over the past two years to come up with a blueprint for a new rail network that will free the North from the constraints of poor infrastructure that have held it back for far too long."
Speaking ahead of the speech to Times Radio on Tuesday, Mr Johnson had promised there would be "quite a lot on NPR" at the conference.
“It’s an enormous project, it’s the biggest ever investment in the railways and it will benefit areas that have not been levelled-up, that have not had attention for years,” he said.
Seeking to explain what levelling-up means, he said: “I think there is talent and genius and imagination and creativity everywhere in this country, but opportunity is not evenly distributed.”
