The plea comes just two months after the Birmingham to Crewe leg of HS2 was delayed by two years as part of efforts to reduce costs for the over-budget project.
In a letter addressed to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, over 60 rail business leaders urged him not to delay the proposed rail reform plans too.
In May 2021, the government announced its plans for the biggest reform to the railway in three decades through the publication of the Plan for Rail.
It includes a proposal to create Great British Railways (GBR) – a planned state-owned public body that will oversee rail transport in Great Britain. It will replace Network Rail as the operator of rail infrastructure across all of Great Britain.
With the exception of services wholly within Scotland and Wales, it will also control the contracting of passenger train services, the setting of fares and timetables, and the collection of fare revenue.
But legislation is needed to create GBR, which has been delayed...