Report due on high-speed rail plan for Glasgow to Edinburgh line
The business case for building a high-speed rail link between Edinburgh and Glasgow will be outlined by the Scottish government.
The project promises to reduce the journey time between the cities to less than 30 minutes by 2024.
Transport Minister Keith Brown informed MSPs that work was now under way to produce a report outlining the costs and benefits of the proposal.
Mr Brown was speaking at Holyrood's infrastructure committee.
The minister said that the Glasgow to Edinburgh high-speed route had the potential to boost rail capacity across the central belt, significantly reduce journey times and possibly lead to new stations being built.
Mr Brown said: "Cost-benefit ratio is a fundamental part of any transport projects we undertake.
"We are just starting that process now and that is why we will have the report coming forward in spring next year."
He told the committee that, even at this stage, it was possible to see the potential for "pretty huge" economic benefits.
Mr Brown said the Scottish government was also continuing to press the UK government to extend its High Speed 2 (HS2) project north of the border, providing a fast connection between London and Glasgow.