Sir Richard Branson called on the Government today to allow the private sector to plug the funding gap which is threatening the growth of the railways.

London to Birmingham journey times of less than 60 minutes would be just one benefit from letting train companies play a bigger role in financing and running the railways.

"We need private vision and investment to take on the challenge that taxpayers are unable and unwilling to fund," said Sir Richard, whose Virgin Trains company operates the West Coast Main Line.

Speaking at Euston station in London today, he said that greater private sector involvement in the railways could lead, within the next 10 years, to:

:: Construction of an underground extension to Birmingham International station with a direct link from there to the West Coast line at Lichfield using the existing M6 corridor;

:: Journey times of under four hours between London and Glasgow;

:: Link the West Coast line at its southern end with both Heathrow and HS1 (the High Speed 1 Channel Tunnel rail link) to Europe;

:: Strip down and modernise crumbling stations and replace them with fit-for-purpose buildings that work efficiently for rail passengers and can be a source of pride to the local community.