As the general election looms, the Secretary of State for Transport Patrick McLoughlin spent yesterday visiting road, rail, air and maritime projects across Cornwall.

Mr McLoughlin flew into Newquay Cornwall Airport on the early morning Flybe flight from Gatwick before embarking on a whistlestop tour of projects in the duchy, including stop-offs in Penzance, Camborne and Redruth and Truro. 

Welcoming the Secretary of State’s visit, Bert Biscoe said “With these investments and the forward thinking of Cornwall Council and its partners, we are seeing real progress in developing sustainable links to the Isles of Scilly and London which will improve connections to and from Cornwall for the future. With the re signalling of the mainline and a refurbished sleeper and strengthened maintenance capacity, we are linking into the future rail network as well as being ahead of the game in digital connectivity” said Bert Biscoe.

“This all represents an innovative, creative and can-do culture founded on the partnerships between Cornwall, transport operators and Central Government. I look forward to welcoming the first half hour rail shuttle to arrive in Cornwall in 2018”.

The Secretary of State was given a briefing on the development of the Airport, including details on how passenger numbers on the London Gatwick service have increased since the introduction of the Department for Transport supported Public Service Obligation at the end of October last year.

This has helped the airport secure new services to Dublin and Stansted as well as the expansion of other services to Manchester, Birmingham and Isles of Scilly. The Airport is also the site of Cornwall’s Aerohub Enterprise Zone.

Following the Airport briefing the Secretary of State travelled to Penzance where he was greeted by Andrew May and Rob Goldsmith, the Chair and Chief Executive of the Isles of Scilly Steamship Company. He was then taken on a tour of the Scillonian passenger vessel and Penzance harbour where he met David Nebesnuick, Mayor of Penzance Town Council and representatives of the Council of the Isles of Scilly, and local Cornwall Councillors Cornelius Olivier and Jim McKenna.

The £12.8m scheme to improve the harbours at St Mary’s and Penzance harbours is being delivered by Cornwall Council as the Local Transport Authority in partnership with the Council of the Isles of Scilly, Penzance Town Council; Duchy of Cornwall, Isles of Scilly Steamship Company and supported by the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Company. Funding for the scheme is coming from the Department of Transport and the European Regional Growth Fund.

After leaving Penzance the Secretary of State then travelled to Camborne, Pool and Redruth where he met local MP George Eustice; Ty Nelson, Project Manager for Carillion; Julian Urbans, Principal Engineer for CORMAC, and local Cornwall Councillor Malcolm Moyle at the site of the East-West link road, before driving along the new stretch of road.

The East West Link road is a familiar project for the Secretary of State who cut the first turf to formally mark the start of work on the £27m road on 16 May 2013.

As well as the new East West link road, the scheme, which has been funded by the Department of Transport, with financial support towards the development costs from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) includes new junctions and cycle facilities on Dudnance Lane and Station Road, and a new link from Station Road to Wilson Way.

The road will provide access to proposed development areas and remove traffic from the A3047 and the East Hill junction. This will reduce congestion and the associated noise and air quality impacts, whilst allowing regeneration projects in the area to proceed over the coming years, supporting economic growth.

After leaving Camborne, the group drove to the Truro Park and Ride site at Langarth where the Secretary of State met local MP Sarah Newton and Arron Kelly, Park and Ride Manager before transferring to a Park and Ride bus for a journey to Truro Railway station.

Truro’s Western Park and Ride was opened in August 2008 and with stops at Truro College, the Royal Cornwall Hospital, New County Hall, and Truro City centre, has been highly successful in encouraging commuters and shoppers to swap their cars for the bus. The site provides capacity for 1209 cars to park, with the latest figures showing between 1300-1400 passengers using the service each day.

After being greeted by representatives from First Great Western, the Secretary of State had a tour of the rail station and was given an update on the proposals to upgrade the station, with a new lounge area for sleeper passengers and improved car parking.

The £146.6m package of improvements to Cornwall’s rail network was announced by Prime Minister David Cameron during a visit to Cornwall last July. As well as the improvements to the sleeper service, the funding will also be used to expand the Long Rock train maintenance site at Penzance to maintain Cornwall’s sleeper trains, and to bring forward a major programme of signalling improvements which will provide faster journeys between Penzance and Totnes and paving the way for the potential introduction of half-hourly services on the Cornish mainline.

Mr McLoughlin said: "Cornwall is seeing the benefits of the government's investment in transport. Better road, air, rail and sea links will make the county an even more attractive destination for businesses and visitors. Our transport infrastructure funding is supporting economic growth and creating jobs in Cornwall as part of this government's long-term economic plan."