Plans to electrify the main rail line between Glasgow and Edinburgh - cutting journey times to 35 minutes - were approved by MSPs last night as part of moves to upgrade train services across the central belt.

But the previous executive's plans for a direct rail link to Edinburgh Airport were scrapped in a move which ministers claim will save the public purse around £400m.

Instead, a new railway station will be built around one mile from the airport at Gogar, with passengers completing the journey by tram.

Stewart Stevenson, the Transport Minister, said the electrification of the line between Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Queen Street would reduce journey times from 50 minutes to around 35 and increase the frequency of the service from four trains an hour to six. Electrification of the rail lines to Dunblane, Alloa and Cumbernauld are also planned, he said.

The projects would take around 10 years to complete and cost up to £1bn.

MSPs backed the government's plans by 65 votes to 60.

Mr Stevenson said: "The best approach for both passengers and taxpayers is to make a step-change in the existing routes, to provide an electrified railway between Edinburgh and Glasgow and beyond. This delivers faster, more reliable services, which cost less to operate and produce less carbon emissions."

Under the Edinburgh Airport Rail Link (Earl), a railway station would have been built under the main runway at a cost of £600m.

But in his statement to MSPs yesterday, Mr Stevenson said the plan was impractical, too risky and overly expensive. He said: "There is simply no sensible way for the Edinburgh Airport rail link to proceed in its original form."

The minister said the government's proposal would provide passengers with just as good a service, but would only cost £200m. He also said linking it to the £500m Edinburgh trams project was better than the previous administration's proposals for two separate schemes costing £1bn.

A new rail interchange at Dalmeny will link the Glasgow-Edinburgh route with the Fife rail line, allowing passengers from Queen Street to travel to Gogar and then on to the airport.

Mr Stevenson said: "The new airport station and the Dalmeny chord will cost around one-third of the estimated cost of Earl. We plan to invest the savings from Earl and more in improving rail services for the many thousands of other rail passengers who travel into both Edinburgh and Glasgow."

The government's plans won the backing of the Tories and the Greens, but were attacked by Labour and the Liberal Democrats.

Iain Gray, Labour spokesman for finance and sustainable growth, said ministers had "failed this parliament, failed Scotland and failed our capital city".

He said: "What this promises is an airport station which isn't at the airport. From Edinburgh we are promised a journey time to Glasgow of 35 minutes. That is good. But it will take almost as long to get to the city's own airport. This is second best and second rate."

Laura Gordon, the director of the Glasgow: Edinburgh Collaboration Initiative, welcomed the government's decision.

She said: "Edinburgh and Glasgow are the heart of the Scottish economy and continued investment in transport infrastructure is imperative if we are to continue to compete with our European rivals for attracting new business to Scotland."

Business leaders also welcomed the electrification announcement, but expressed their disappointment that Earl had been ditched.

Iain McMillan, the director of CBI Scotland, said the Glasgow-Edinburgh rail plans deserved widespread support but added: "The decision to abandon Earl demonstrates a lack of ambition and is disappointing news for the business community.