The Shadow Minister of State for Rail, Stephen Morgan MP, was briefed on the importance of delivering the Ely Junction improvement works during a visit to Cambridge last month.
Mr Morgan was joined by Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Dr Nik Johnson and EEH managing director Naomi Green, alongside colleagues from Rail Freight Group, Freeport East and Network Rail.
The meeting was an opportunity to highlight the importance of delivering Ely - enabling more freight trains to travel between Felixstowe and the Midlands and North: boosting and levelling-up the economy; reducing the need for 100,000 lorry trips a year; and cutting congestion by 5.6 million hours a year.
In October, as part of the Network North proposals, the government announced funding to deliver Ely, with the focus now on ensuring preparatory work begins as soon as possible.
It was also noted during the meeting how England's Economic Heartland and Transport East, which worked together to promote the need for Ely, provide valuable consistency and clarity over regional transport priorities in their role as sub-national transport bodies.