THE route of the proposed High Speed 2 rail route that passes through Barnsley offers the highest return on investment of the whole network, say independent researchers.

Building HS2 from Birmingham through South Yorkshire stands to deliver overwhelming economic benefits both for the areas along the route and for the national economy, according to research carried out by the Eastern Network Partnership.

That partnership is made up of councils and Local Enterprise Partnerships across Yorkshire, the East Midlands and the North East.

The government is proposing to build a Y-shaped network, costing around £42.6bn, which would link London to Birmingham before splitting into two routes, one to Manchester and an eastern route through the East Midlands, South Yorkshire and on to Leeds with a direct link to York and on to Tyneside and Scotland.

Barnsley Council leader Coun Sir Steve Houghton, who is also chair of the Sheffield City Region Combined Authority, said: "The eastern route of HS2 offers the most value for money of any part of the project and its construction should be given a higher priority by the government."