Looking at this document, and the Skanska piling document, it is fairly obvious that the Euston approach are too far advanced to change the design easily. For clarity discussing from end of tunnels to new Granby Terrace Bridge or Hampstead Road bridge area, (which is the Euston throat area, not the actual Euston station area where designs seem to ping-pong between building 11 and 6 platforms)
If you combine with the recent update documents on Euston tunnels (which are in Old Oak thread as that is where TBMs are being assembled), then it appears that work is expected to restart big time, between January and May 2025. (That is also consistent with 2 year pause announced Spring 2023).
Not going to speculate on eventual size of Euston station, but logically everyone involved with an ounce of common sense will have worked out if HS2 gets extended northwards in subsequent decades then eventually going to need the extra platforms.
Let’s set aside the issue of future capacity needs for a second because I think the answer of what should be done at Euston is fairly obvious just from the facts on the ground.
The original plan was this…knock down existing platforms 17&18, clear the land to the west up to Cobourg St, build first six platforms. First phase to birmingham opens, freeing up capacity in classic station. Then knock down further existing platforms and build new HS2 platforms for phase 2.
What’s happened so far…platforms 17&18 demolished, land cleared to Cobourg St, approaches proceeding as planned.
The govt have said they want a six platform station for HS2, so isn’t the most sensible course of action to dust off the old plan and just build phase one of it?
Any other plan coming forward to achieve this is going to have to eat up more of the existing station, and will have to demonstrate how this is cheaper and how the knock-on disruption to existing services can be managed.
Taking the most extreme scenario, the govt might mandate that no new land can be used for platforms and the existing Euston station footprint must be used. Existing station has to be reduced to a 6-7 platform mainline terminus in order to build the HS2 station. That is surely never going to happen.
There could be a middle ground where some more of the existing station is demolished and some of the cleared land is taken for other development, but it still needs to be justified in terms of cost and disruption.
Even if you don’t care about the future and you’re simply looking for a way out of this mess, the easiest option is surely to put the new platforms on the cleared land, put as much development as you like on top, and leave the existing station alone for now.