£1.6bn city transport fund boost

THE government is committing £100million for three new rapid transit routes to Liverpool Airport and to Liverpool and Everton's stadiums as part of a huge £1.6billion transport boost for the city region.

- By LIAM THORP

The spending blitz, set to be announced by chancellor Rachel Reeves today ahead of her much-anticipated spending review next week, will also include money to buy a new fleet of buses for the Liverpool City Region's soon-to-be franchised bus network.

Speaking in Greater Manchester today, Ms Reeves will pledge to more than double investment in local transport in England’s city regions, promising to deliver the biggest ever investment in these areas over the next five years.

The news comes as reports suggest the chancellor will also back huge plans for a new railway line between Liverpool and Manchester, which has been campaigned for by the two mayors - and two main newspapers - of both city regions.

In her speech today, Ms Reeves is expected to say that "a Britain that is better off cannot rely on a handful of places forging ahead of the rest of the country," adding that the "result of such thinking has been growth created in too few places, felt by too few people, and wide gaps between regions and between our cities and towns."