George Osborne kicks off Northern Hub investment with start of 4th platform at Manchester Airport station

George Osborne has launched the start of work to build a 4th platform at Manchester airport’s railway station. This marks the start of the £600n Northern Hub project.  The airport says the 4th platform project  – costing £20m – will be delivered 18 months earlier than hoped, with works carried out in parallel to the expansion of Metrolink lines to the airport. It is due to be completed by the end of 2015. The aim is to lay more track to improve the region’s heavily-congested rail network, on which other work is also ongoing. The local MP talked about how this rail  platform will help us to “compete in the global race” !?  The hope is that better rail in the north of England will “ensure growth is not concentrated in any one place by keeping Britain connected and creating thousands of local jobs, delivering a brighter economic future for the whole country.” The airport said the new rail scheme would be “key to boosting passenger numbers, luring businesses to its £800m Airport City scheme”. The Beijing Construction Engineering Group is teaming-up with Manchester Airports Group, the Greater Manchester Pension Fund and UK construction firm Carillion to invest in the project, “which aims to create up to 16,000 jobs.”
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George Osborne kicks off £600m Northern Hub investment at Manchester Airport

7 Feb 2014 (Manchester Evening News)
The chancellor marked the start of work to build a fourth platform at the airport’s rail station

The biggest investment in Manchester’s railways since the Victorian era was today set to be launched by Chancellor George Osborne.

The £600n Northern Hub project was due to be kicked off with the announcement a fourth platform will be built at Manchester Airport train station.

And bosses say that project – costing £20m – will be delivered 18 months earlier than hoped, with works carried out in parallel to the expansion of Metrolink lines to the airport.

Completion of the platform, set to be by the end of 2015, will mark the first milestone for the wider Northern Hub, a scheme to lay new track to improve the region’s heavily-congested rail network.

It will run alongside the current £400m scheme to electrify the lines between Manchester, Liverpool, Preston and Blackpool by 2016. Combined with the £44m Victoria Station facelift it takes total investment to more than £1bn.

The Tatton MP was set to say: “The government’s long term plan is about securing a recovery for all parts of the country.

“Because of the tough decisions we’ve taken on day-to-day spending, we’re able to invest in key infrastructure projects like the Northern Hub, which will create billions for the region.

“Each part of this project, like the first work at Manchester Airport station that I’ve kicked off today, will help us build the infrastructure we need to compete in the global race.

“This investment will ensure growth is not concentrated in any one place by keeping Britain connected and creating thousands of local jobs, delivering a brighter economic future for the whole country.”

Martin Frobisher, area director for Network Rail, said: “Providing a faster, more regular and reliable railway between key towns and cities in the north of England provides significant benefits to passengers and helps to boost the economy, making it quicker and easier to travel further for work or pleasure.”

Construction work at the airport will take place from March 14 to April 7 and will include two weekend closures on March 14-15 and April 5-6.

There will be replacement bus services for trains into the airport and all First TransPennine Express, Northern Rail and Arriva Train Wales services into and out of Manchester will be affected.

Passengers are warned to leave more time for their journeys. There will also be road disruptions – with clearly marked diversions in place.

Andrew Cowan, the airport’s chief operating officer, has heralded the scheme as key to boosting passenger numbers, luring businesses to its £800m Airport City scheme and even securing a direct route to China.

He said: “We welcome the fourth platform at the airport station. It will further open up the airport for our catchment area across northern England.

“Furthermore it will provide direct access for businesses and employees to our £800m Airport City development, which is transforming the area around the station into an international business hub.

“The fact the development can be completed ahead of schedule and alongside other construction works taking place will be advantageous to employees, the local community and of course our 20m plus airport passengers each year, many of which use the station, which operates 24 hours a day.

“The Northern Hub will benefit not only the airport but for the whole region.

“There is a huge amount of investment in this region – creating infrastructure for the future and jobs, it’s great for the local economy.”

Transport bosses say The overall Northern Hub will allow 700 extra trains to run every day by 2019, boosting yearly passenger capacity by 44m, bringing £4bn to the region’s economy, along with up to 30,000 jobs.

A major element of the Northern Hub is a new rail bridge to connect Victoria and Piccadilly.

Dubbed the Ordsall Chord – and subject to a public enquiry in April – it’s aimed at unblocking the congested city centre and giving direct access to the airport from Rochdale, Halifax and Bradford by December 2016.

Councillor Andrew Fender, chair of the Transport for Greater Manchester committee, said: “I am pleased that we have been able to work with our partners to deliver this crucial addition to the airport’s railway station 18 months ahead of schedule.

“That’s made possible by capitalising on the delivery of our new Metrolink line to Manchester Airport, funded entirely by the 10 Greater Manchester authorities, which will add yet further links to this key employment centre.

“The fourth platform will, of course, be the first of several significant improvements delivered by the vital Northern Hub programme that will transform our incredibly popular railways and provide the foundation for sustained economic growth across the region.”

Nick Donovan, FTPE managing director, said: “These works will further enhance the railway station and provide yet more service reliability and customer choice as part of the wider Northern Hub project whilst also offering customers from across the north of England greater connections from rail to air.

“I am delighted that we have been able to work closely with Network Rail and Manchester Airport to facilitate the early delivery of this investment in additional platform capacity.

“Currently an eighth of our business is initiated with journeys to and from Manchester Airport. From May this year we will be increasing the number of seats on our services from the airport by nearly 30%.”

Alex Hynes, managing director, Northern Rail said: “Millions of pounds worth of investment in rail in the north equals travel benefits to millions of passengers. The development at Manchester Airport will mean more reliable connections between rail and air, offering more opportunities to our customers to travel throughout Britain and beyond from the north of England.”

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/george-osborne-kicks-600m-northern-6680306

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Chinese construction company confirmed as part of Manchester Airport City development group

13 Oct 2013 (Manchester Evening News)

The Beijing Construction Engineering Group is involved in the joint-venture that will bring the Airport City scheme to reality over the next 12 years.

A Chinese construction company was today confirmed as part of the group that will develop an £800m business park next to Manchester Airport.

The Beijing Construction Engineering Group is involved in the joint-venture that will bring the Airport City scheme to reality over the next 12 years.

It is teaming-up with Manchester Airports Group, the Greater Manchester Pension Fund and UK construction firm Carillion to invest in the project, which aims to create up to 16,000 jobs.

Over the coming years, they will build a series of office blocks, logistics hubs, hotels and warehouses that will be filled by global companies lured to the region.

Property develop Argent, which is behind the One St Peter’s Square scheme in Manchester city centre and led the revamp of London’s Kings Cross station, has been appointed development manager.

The deal was announced by chancellor George Osborne during a special visit to Beijing today.

It also marks the Far East launch of the Manchester-China Forum, which aims to boost trade links between the two locations.

And it is hoped securing Chinese investment into the region will go a long way towards encouraging airlines to launch a direct service between Manchester and the Far East.

Charlie Cornish, chief executive of MAG, said: “We are delighted to confirm organisations of global standing as our joint venture partners.

“The inclusion of BCEG is significant because as a Group, we have been keen to forge greater links with the Far East and this gives us an opportunity to strengthen vital business links with China.

“With GMPF on board, Greater Manchester is investing in the future of the north west and Carillion bring sector-leading experience in project finance, delivery and sustainability, both in the UK and internationally.

“In Argent, we have the one of the most renowned developers in its field and by working together as a partnership, we are well positioned to deliver the UK’s first Airport City.”

The joint-venture sees MAG take a 50 per cent stake, BCEG a 20 per cent stake, Carillion a 20 per cent stake and the GMPF a 10 per cent stake.

MAG’s investment is in the form on the land on which the 5m sq ft of industrial and leisure space will be created.

The J-V partners will then look to build offices, warehouses, hotels and manufacturing plants for specific tenants and then sell those sites on for profit once they are up-and-running.

Airport City sits at the hear of Greater Manchester’s Enterprise Zone, which means companies choosing to locate there can benefit from business rate reductions and other perks.

Xing Yan, managing director of BCEG, said: “To be included in such an interesting and unique development is a real honour. To be part of a project of this size and scale, working alongside other such highly regarded organisations, will be an exciting, challenging and rewarding opportunity, which we look forward to beginning.

“We see our involvement in Airport City as an extension of the memorandum of understanding between China and the UK, where we have been looking to further explore joint infrastructure opportunities for some time.”

Richard Howson, chief executive of Carillion, said: ”We are delighted to be a member of the joint venture that’s been chosen to deliver this prestigious development, which reflects our reputation for quality and reliability and our success in building strong long-term relationships with our partners and customers.

“We look forward to working in partnership with MAG to deliver Airport City, which will further enhance Manchester’s position as one of the premier airports in the world.”

David Partridge, managing partner at Argent, said: “We are very enthusiastic about being a part of what is, without doubt, one of the most exciting development opportunities in the country.

“Airport City is an innovative and inspiring vision that is set to change the way business is done in the UK. Our aspiration as part of this international joint venture to create a world class business destination that will open up new connections on a global level.

“Argent’s involvement plays to our key place-making strengths, and underlines our continuing commitment to Manchester and the north west region.”

GMPF is the pension scheme for the 10 Greater Manchester councils and a host of other bodies, such as schools, colleges and charities. It is also part of the nationwide pension scheme for local authorities.

GMPF Chairman Coun Kieran Quinn said: “The Greater Manchester Pension Fund is delighted to be a partner in the Airport City project.

“This innovative development will attract international businesses to locate to the region and support economic growth in Manchester and the wider north west.”

Adam Jupp, MEN head of business, spoke to the MEN website about the deal and what it means for Manchester
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/business/business-news/chinese-construction-company-beijing-construction-6176750

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