Glasgow Airport will be have a direct rail link

Work has already started on a �5.8bn plan to upgrade the Glasgow to London West Coast Main Line by 2005.

A �2.9bn scheme for the Edinburgh to London East Coast Main Line is planned to follow.

When both of these upgrades are complete, they will enable tilting trains to run on the lines at speeds of 140mph.

The investment package from the SRA also includes money to connect Glasgow and Edinburgh airports to the national rail network.

At present, people flying from these airports rely on cars and bus connections from nearby towns and cities.

Major upgrades

The plan is to provide both of these terminals with adjoining train stations in the next 10 years.

The package also sets cash aside for the redevelopment of Edinburgh Waverley station on Princes Street and several other stations throughout Scotland.

There will also be an upgrade of the line which links Glasgow Queen Street to Edinburgh Waverly via Falkirk.

The �60bn package was announced on the same day that Scottish Executive Transport Minister Sarah Boyack opened a new Forth Ports rail link.

The minister said the service would take the equivalent of 87,272 lorry miles off Lothian roads each year.