Concorde of tracks design is revealed

Sleek, streamlined and gleaming, they are like Concorde on tracks.

This is how the high speed trains that could cut journey times between Birmingham and London to 49 minutes may look.

The double-decker design is by Paul Priestman of Priestmangoode, designer of the iconic Virgin Pendolino train. He has shown his designs in a bid to persuade the Government to press ahead with the £30bn high speed rail line as quickly as possible.

Mr Priestman believes that his concept, dubbed Mercury, may be the new Great British design icon, following in the footsteps of Concorde, the Spitfire, Rolls-Royce and the Routemaster bus.

He is working with Chinese firm Sifang to design high speed trains to link Bejing with major cities. "It's shameful that in the 21st Century when we have to compete more than ever with the rest of the world, we don't have a modern day global transport design icon to fly the flag for British industry," he said.

Mercury will not be the yellow-gold colour of the basic design. It will be the first double-decker train to operate in the UK, with an interior design that Priestman believes will revolutionise domestic rail travel.

It features traditional commuter seats with their own entertainment systems, private berths for families or business meetings, a children's play area and a first-class section mirroring air travellers' choice with a luxury lounge and bar.

The exterior will be 400 metres (1,312ft) long and the extended nose section will be one of the most extreme in the world — vitally important for the aerodynamics of a train which will travel at 225mph.

It was intended to start building in 2017 with trains running from 2025 but the Government has taken it back to the drawing board to link to Heathrow Airport.