Hundreds of jobs, faster tube journeys and regional growth are expected thanks to a new rail manufacturing plant officially opened by transport secretary Louise Haigh (pictured).
She attended the £200 million site – Siemens’ Rail Village in Goole – to open it today.
The plant will be home to hundreds of high-skilled jobs where almost 100 new state-of-the-art Piccadilly Line trains will be manufactured and assembled.
In a further boost to the region, Siemens Mobility is also announcing up to a further £40 million towards a new Bogie Assembly and Service Centre at the site which will create up to 200 extra jobs.
The world class hub has been made possible by the government’s funding settlements with TfL, giving Siemens the confidence to invest in the site.
It represents the scale of what can be achieved through joint public and private sector support – and underlines the Government’s commitment to attracting international investment.
The grand opening comes ahead of the government’s International Investment Summit on October 14, which will bring together some of the world’s most influential companies and major investors.
The summit will be an opportunity for the prime minister and cabinet to outline how the government will provide the certainty and opportunities businesses need to make Britain the best place in the world to invest.
The government is focused on creating the conditions for businesses to invest, through trust partnership and stability. We will fix the foundations by investing in the jobs, industries and infrastructure of the future to rebuild Britain and make everyone, everywhere better off.
As part of this drive, the transport secretary is working to end the ‘boom and bust’ approach to rail manufacturing by delivering a long-term industrial strategy for rolling stock.
Ms Haigh said: “This impressive, world-class facility will be transformational to Goole and its people, providing a boost to the region’s economy and supporting hundreds of skilled jobs.
“Its opening demonstrates the importance of high quality, long-term investment to pave the way for employment and growth.
“I know how vital rail manufacturing is to our economy, which is why we will not sit on our hands when it comes to supporting it. For too long, the cycle of boom-and-bust has held back this sector.
“That’s why I am determined to put an end to the stop-start approach to investment and provide the industry with the certainty it needs to deliver a railway that is fit for the future.”
The new Piccadilly Line trains are expected to start serving the London Underground network next year, delivering a boost to reliability, extra services for passengers and increased capacity.
They will be fully air-conditioned and more accessible, creating more comfortable journeys for the travelling public.
Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan said: “This train manufacturing facility in Goole is a fantastic example of the expertise we don’t have and how investment in London benefits the whole country. This factory, where the new state-of-the-art Piccadilly line trains will be built, will create up to 900 direct jobs and support another 1,700 in the supply chain, delivering great benefits to the wider UK economy, showing that where London succeeds, the whole country succeeds and vice versa.
“I’m excited to continue working together with the new government to build a better, fairer and more prosperous London, and country, for everyone.”
Sambit Banerjee, joint CEO at Siemens Mobility said: “After more than a decade of tremendous dedication and hard work, we have officially opened our state-of-the-art Rail Village in Goole which is testament to our commitment to the North of England.
“We’ll assemble 80% of London’s new Piccadilly line trains and all future Siemens trains for the UK including our Verve battery train here in Goole and I’m pleased that we are supporting the local supply chain in the process.”
