A new report into the new high speed rail link across the UK has said that the only alternative would be “14 years of disruption” to the country’s rail networks.

The report, by Network Rail and Atkins, said that upgrading current lines as an alternative to the high speed network would take years and cause severe disruption for passengers.

On some routes, journey times would double, whilst causing 2,770 weekend closures and costing £20 billion.