THE Welsh Government is dithering over getting started on electrifying Valleys railway lines, an AM claimed.

Lib Dem Eluned Parrott said Network Rail had not yet been given the go-ahead to start work on the project, despite an agreement over funding between the UK and Welsh governments being reached in November.

The project has reportedly been frozen on the second stage of Network Rail’s 8-stage “'GRIP' planning process now for two years.

The Welsh Government’s business case for the project made it clear that, to ensure savings are made, work must happen at the same time as work on the Great Western Main Line (Swansea-Paddington). Work on main line bridges has now reached Wales, South Wales Central AM MsEluned Parrott said.

She added: “Given the fanfare that greeted the announcement that funding issues had been resolved, it is astonishing that Network Rail officials are still waiting on the go-ahead from the Welsh Government five months later.

“While there has been much aspirational talk in recent months about the South Wales Metro and the potential for new electric trains, these things simply aren’t possible unless the infrastructure work gets moving.

“Years of underinvestment from both Labour and Conservative governments over the last 50 fifty years have led to Wales being one of the only countries in Europe without a single mile of electrified track.

"The Coalition Government has put that right with the electrification of the Great Western Main Line to Swansea and the funding to electrify the Valleys Lines too.

“Work on that main line electrification project is already progressing, as people living along the route will have seen. If the Welsh Government doesn’t give the order to go ahead soon, I’m worried that the whole project could be put at risk.”

A Welsh Government spokesman said: “Since the agreement was announced, we have been carrying out extensive due diligence work on the Valleys Line Electrification project to understand the latest stage of design and the latest price estimates and to ensure that Network Rail costs are brought down.

"It would be remiss of us to take on a project from the Department for Transport and simply deliver it without checking the contractual status, pricing position and how it fits with our new powers post-2017

“The detailed specification required for modernisation of the Valleys Lines is partly dependent on choices such as rolling stock and franchise design. These matters are being considered alongside our due diligence process.”