• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!

HS2: Government to give high-speed rail line the go-ahead

Status
Not open for further replies.

yorkie

Forum Staff
Staff Member
Administrator
Joined
6 Jun 2005
Messages
67,438
Location
Yorkshire
So, here is the news we have been waiting for:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51443421
The government will give the go-ahead for the entire High Speed 2 (HS2) rail line to be built, the BBC can confirm.

An announcement on the rail project linking London to Birmingham and Manchester and Leeds is expected by the Prime Minister on Tuesday.

While the whole line will be built, the government will seek a review of the second phase covering the North.

It hopes it will identify cost savings as well as integrating these lines into the existing railways.

Thoughts welcome, but please bear in mind that if you wish to post your thoughts on why you think HS2 should not go ahead, please use the existing Why are people opposed to HS2? thread.

And if anyone wishes to post any alternative suggestions, please either create a new thread, or use an existing one, such as HS2: How would you build it? in the Speculative Ideas section.
 
Last edited:
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R

RailUK Forums

Chester1

Established Member
Joined
25 Aug 2014
Messages
3,972
It will be interesting to see if there are further changes to the timetable e.g. opening London to Crewe or even Manchester from day 1.
 

Bald Rick

Veteran Member
Joined
28 Sep 2010
Messages
29,070
It will be interesting to see if there are further changes to the timetable e.g. opening London to Crewe or even Manchester from day 1.

Won’t be Manchester from Day 1, as the planning is several years behind, indeed the Bill for Ph2b has yet to be lodged with Parliament. London - Crewe in one go is however entirely achievable, as Handsacre - Crewe is relatively straightforward to build.
 

GRALISTAIR

Established Member
Joined
11 Apr 2012
Messages
7,807
Location
Dalton GA USA & Preston Lancs
Well I am visiting customers in Dallas tomorrow so I will miss this. So if this is announced and some other goodies also for up north, what will be announced in the chancellor’s speech in March? Even more? Really hoping Transpennine electrification happens too. Great news anyway. I think it sensible that the project is broken up in stages. Keep an eye on costs better.
 

PaxVobiscum

Established Member
Joined
4 Feb 2012
Messages
2,395
Location
Glasgow
I fear somebody else will need to cover the building of the terminal station(s) in Scotland. While I anticipate having an elevated vantage point by then, alas I will not be able to share any photos :lol:.
 

Randomer

Member
Joined
31 Jul 2017
Messages
314
The bit in the article about committing to the whole project but with a review of the second stage seems ominous to me.

It hopes it will identify cost savings as well as integrating these lines into the existing railways.
From the BBC Article Posted by Yorkie above.

I can see the project having a major amount of de-scoping and more usage of classic lines to get to areas of the eastern leg. In the same way the Great Western electrification project is now being hailed as almost complete but in reality is missing large components of the initial commitment like Swansea and the Bristol area.
 

LNW-GW Joint

Veteran Member
Joined
22 Feb 2011
Messages
19,555
Location
Mold, Clwyd
A world leading project.

I think we are about 25 years behind the High Speed curve globally, more like 40 years behind some countries.
Even Morocco has a 186km 320km/h line in service (largely built and funded by France).
In Europe, France, Germany, Italy and Spain all have large high-speed networks, not to mention Japan and China.
We will be borrowing their technology, often using their contractors. HS1 is a French LGV clone.
 

miami

Established Member
Joined
3 Oct 2015
Messages
3,164
Location
UK
We will be borrowing their technology, often using their contractors

Aren't HS2 pumping a lot into training? If we actually managed to get some long term investment in this country those learning skills on HS2 can be leading HS3, 4 and 5.
 

td97

Established Member
Joined
26 Jul 2017
Messages
1,292
Fantastic outcome if well overdue :lol:!

For curiosity purposes the construction speed for Phase 1 works out at 0.0025 km/h or ~20x slower than a garden snail.

"Streamlining" or similar for Ph2a is likely to mean better integration with NPR
 

Shimbleshanks

Member
Joined
2 Jan 2012
Messages
1,020
Location
Purley
Maybe I'll even live long enough to ride on it (first section only), if I can afford it on what's left of my pension by then...
 

Bantamzen

Established Member
Joined
4 Dec 2013
Messages
9,669
Location
Baildon, West Yorkshire
I'm going to reserve judgement until the formal announcement is made, and the exact wording of it is known. Whilst I'm sure HS2 Phase 1 will go ahead, Phases 2a/b are conveniently still cans that could still be kicked further down the road, with the final design & funding due outside the lifespan of this sitting government.
 

hwl

Established Member
Joined
5 Feb 2012
Messages
7,354
I'm going to reserve judgement until the formal announcement is made, and the exact wording of it is known. Whilst I'm sure HS2 Phase 1 will go ahead, Phases 2a/b are conveniently still cans that could still be kicked further down the road, with the final design & funding due outside the lifespan of this sitting government.
2a is only about £4bn and very high BCR so will get the nod long side 1.
2b is much further behind 2a in terms of being spade ready.
 

Tio Terry

Member
Joined
2 May 2014
Messages
1,178
Location
Spain
Good, get on and build it.

My only regret is that I shall probably be pushing up daisies before it is completed, but if any of it opens when I’m still around I’d like to be on the first train!
 

class26

Member
Joined
4 May 2011
Messages
1,123
I'm going to reserve judgement until the formal announcement is made, and the exact wording of it is known. Whilst I'm sure HS2 Phase 1 will go ahead, Phases 2a/b are conveniently still cans that could still be kicked further down the road, with the final design & funding due outside the lifespan of this sitting government.

It was said that the whole project would go ahead and I suspect the conditions attached to phases 2a and b are just to placate the critics in the Tory party.
 

Ianno87

Veteran Member
Joined
3 May 2015
Messages
15,215
More like a world catching up project.

I think we are about 25 years behind the High Speed curve globally, more like 40 years behind some countries.
Even Morocco has a 186km 320km/h line in service (largely built and funded by France).
In Europe, France, Germany, Italy and Spain all have large high-speed networks, not to mention Japan and China.
We will be borrowing their technology, often using their contractors. HS1 is a French LGV clone.

An opportunity to take what the world has done, learn the lessons, and make it even better.
 

hwl

Established Member
Joined
5 Feb 2012
Messages
7,354
It was said that the whole project would go ahead and I suspect the conditions attached to phases 2a and b are just to placate the critics in the Tory party.
2a is nearly through Parliament (Lords committee stage) unlike 2b
 

LRV3004

Member
Joined
17 Mar 2015
Messages
433
Glad it's got the go ahead - hopefully means my potential new job will come to fruition now!
 

duncanp

Established Member
Joined
16 Aug 2012
Messages
4,856
They should also give some thought to the redevelopment and expansion of Euston tube station.

The current station is small and outdated and struggles to cope at busy times.

Not much point in getting people to London quicker if they then have to fight to get on the Victoria or Northern lines.

Birmingham is extending the tramway to the new HS2 station at Curzon Street.
 

swt_passenger

Veteran Member
Joined
7 Apr 2010
Messages
31,267
They should also give some thought to the redevelopment and expansion of Euston tube station.

The current station is small and outdated and struggles to cope at busy times...
Already part of the project. There’s a massive rebuild of the underground circulation areas, with a subsurface link to Euston Square on the Met/Circle. There’s probably info in an existing thread somewhere although I can’t find it at the moment...
 
Joined
25 Jan 2016
Messages
541
Location
Wolverhampton
As a Wolverhampton resident and believer in such development, I am delighted that the wrangling is over and that the green light has been given.

This will free up the West Coast Mainline massively and enable much better services going forward. I think that Brum-Crewe being now linked into Phase 1 as reported, is an additional bonus and will be significant in terms of ensuring investment, comes in sooner rather than later.

At least the diggers and workers can get straight to work for Phase 1 and drag the nation, kicking and screaming into the High Speed age!

P.S: no doubt that Avanti West Coast will be rather pleased, considering a good amount of there bid for the WCP was based on HS2's development.
 

paul332

Member
Joined
9 Nov 2007
Messages
61
What a relief. The right (and only) decision for all the reasons eloquently articulated by Nigel Harris, Domeyhead in this thread, and others.

So now is the time to get on with it and deliver to maximise commercial, social and regenerative benefits for as much of the country as possible. And also be generous to Ron and Anne and their ilk, and the 0.01% of the country's ancient woodland that will sadly succumb to the bulldozers.
 
Joined
24 Jun 2014
Messages
432
Location
Derby
The Financial Times article can be seen on msn news.

I's saying that the project will be split into three parts; Euston will be removed from the project and developed separately, Birmingham northwards will be developed as a northern regeneration scheme, and only London to Birmingham (excluding Euston) will be called HS2. Later in the article it states that the go-ahead will be given for Birmingham - Crewe today as well, but that the other schemes will be subject to review to see how costs can be cut.

The article states that other projects likely to get approval today include the £3bn electrification of the railway between Manchester and York; however, I've seen reference somewhere to an interview with Javid in which he implies that it will be the new trans-Pennine railway which will be given the go-ahead, not the electrification scheme.

It's also saying that HS2 approval will be part of a greater package which will see £5bn spent on buses over the next five years, and that there will be a "mini-Holland" project to develop 1000 miles of cycle routes.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Top