Britain is spending up to almost 10 times more than Japan on high-speed railways, a new damning report has revealed.
Even though the Japanese system must journey through earthquake-prone terrain, the UK is forking out millions of more taxpayer cash on projects which are blocked by the planning process.
Latest data from think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs shows the first phase of Britain’s HS2 project has cost an eye-watering £470million per route-kilometre.
Meanwhile, extensions to Japan’s Shinkansen through mountainous terrain have cost between £50million and £100million per kilometre.
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For Europe, similar schemes cost their taxpayers around £25million to £32million per kilometre in an embarrassing comparison to British railway work.
The issue, according to the author, lies within the UK’s institutions, arguing the planning system hands too much power to those who can block construction.
The report’s author, Valentin Boboc, said: “Britain has an institutional problem when it comes to building infrastructure.
“We spend as much as our neighbours on infrastructure projects and get a fraction of what they get for it, because nobody in the system faces hard budget constraints, whilst the planning system gives asymmetric power to blockers over builders.
“Leeds has been trying to build a tram network since 1991 and still has nothing to show for it, largely because our planning and procurement rules do not reward delivery according to commercial incentives.”
British Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects generally take nine to 17 years from inception to opening, while it takes three to six years over in Japan.
The report also found that cities with populations above 150,000 across France had a tram, light-rail, or metro system.
Meanwhile, a measly 30 British towns and cities lack the same infrastructure.
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In Marseille, one of France’s largest cities, 87 per cent of residents can reach the city centre by public transport within 30 minutes, while the same only applies to 38 per cent in Leeds.
The report blamed the cancellation of the HS2 leg between Birmingham and Manchester across the West Midlands and north west.
And, since 1991, Leeds has doled out £70million in a bid to construct a mass transit system. There is not even a track laid out yet.
Authorities are attempting to kickstart the long-awaited project now. Still, first services are not expected until the late 2030s.
Another report earlier this year found the Government was wasting a staggering £8billion a year by overpaying on transport infrastructure projects.
If costs had been as efficient as fellow developed nations, Whitehall could have saved £42billion – enough to boost the controversial Defence Investment Plan.
British authorities spent 65 per cent more than European counterparties on new road, railway and tram projects, including France, Spain and Italy.
The report, made by think tanks Britain Remade and the Centre for British Progress, assessed 345 different transport projects across 21 countries, 121 road projects and 224 rail and tram schemes.
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