The government has announced is will spend more than £9bn improving the rail network in order to attempt to boost the economy.

Professor Stuart Cole, former special government advisor on transport, explains that operating costs of electric trains are 20% less and "the opportunity is there to pass on some of those savings on to the customer".

Maria Eagle, shadow secretary of state for transport, welcomes the investment and believes the fact it has been reinstated "is a good thing" but, she told the Today programme, it "won't help jobs and growth now".

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