HS2

High speed spurs could boost decentralisation – Greengauge 21

23.05.13: Greengauge 21 has welcomed comments from transport minister Simon Burns, confirming how further extensions could be added to HS2 to help rebalance the national economy. Extending the project to a high-speed network across the UK could be &l...

More HS2 tunnels as DfT publishes design refinements

17.05.13: The draft Environmental Statement (ES) and design refinements consultations for HS2 have been published by the DfT. The documents will be open to public consultation until July 11. It helps to prepare the formal ES, which is essential for t...

NAO criticisms of HS2 are ‘out of date’ - DfT

17.05.13: The Government has rejected the NAO report published yesterday which criticised the business case for HS2, as it publishes a draft Environmental Statement confirming major new stretches of tunnelling for the high-speed line. The NAO identif...

£3.3bn funding gap for HS2 – NAO

16.05.13: The NAO has identified an estimated £3.3bn funding gap in the costs for HS2 over four years from 2017/18 – 2020/21. The Government has yet to decide how to fill this gap, a new review warns. The DfT said the report was overly si...

East Midlands HS2 tunnel could be extended

13.05.13: A revised route for the second phase of HS2 has been developed by the DfT to allow plans for a strategic rail freight interchange depot to go ahead. A planned tunnel could be extended under the East Midlands Airport to avoid the majority of...

Ex-cabinet minister slams HS2 as a ‘boy’s toy’

10.05.13: HS2 is a “boy’s toy” that will “saddle future governments with huge debt”, former Welsh secretary Cheryl Gillan has said. After she was sacked from the Cabinet in the September 2012 reshuffle, the Chesham &...

Green light for HS2 legislation in Queen’s Speech

08.05.13: HS2 will go ahead, the Queen’s speech has confirmed. The £33bn project has undergone serious opposition from campaign groups and people living near the planned route, but an HS2 Hybrid Bill and High Speed Preparation Bill have now be...

HS2 exceptional hardship scheme – consultation extended

25.04.13: Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin has extended the consultation for the HS2 (EHS). It covers properties affected by Phase Two of the project, between the West Midlands and Manchester and Leeds. The new closing date for the consultation...

Extra 9km tunnels proposed for HS2

24.04.13: HS2 Ltd has modified plans for the route through London, to cut 15 months off the construction time. Following lobbying by local residents, the company has proposed to include extra 9km twin-bored tunnels under Ealing and Northolt. The cont...

Peers and HS2 officials to discuss alternative ‘Euston Cross’ plan

22.04.13: The peers who proposed an alternative London terminus for HS2 – the ‘Euston Cross’ plan – have welcomed the decision to abandon plans to demolish and rebuild Euston. Lord Bradshaw and Lord Berkeley, chairman of the R...

HS2 Euston re-build plans dropped after protests

19.04.13: HS2 Ltd says the redevelopment of Euston station to make it ready for high-speed rail no longer requires it to be knocked down and rebuilt. The new proposal involves retaining platforms 1-15 (of Euston’s 18 platforms) at their current...

HS2 has the potential to be ‘biggest driver of jobs’

09.04.13: HS2 could boost job opportunities both in the UK and abroad, new research suggests. A survey of professionals in the construction, built environment and engineering sectors found that 76% believe HS2 will deliver long-term growth in job opp...

Anti-HS2 councils will appeal judicial review decision

22.03.13: Councils whose legal bid to quash HS2 failed last week are to appeal against parts of the judge’s ruling. Mr Justice Ouseley rejected nine of the ten grounds for judicial review brought by the coalition of campaigners and local author...

HS2 needed to cope with rail demand in West Midlands

20.03.13: The rise in rail journeys in Coventry and Birmingham underlines the need for an increase in capacity through HS2, Centro has argued. Figures released by ATOC show that Coventry has seen the highest growth in rail journeys, with the number i...

HS2 compensation process judged unlawful

15.03.13: The high court has ruled that the Government’s consultation process for compensating those affected by HS2 was “unlawful” – but in nine other areas the judge ruled against anti-HS2 campaigners, meaning there should be no...