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Government confirms HS2 to go ahead

HS2 will be a Y-shaped rail network with stations in London, Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield and the East Midlands linked by high speed trains conveying up to 26,000 people each hour at speeds of up to 250mph.

Plans for the route for HS2 are controversial and have already seen a number of alterations, including an increase in the amount of line running through tunnel sections.

That, however, has not appeased the ‘Stop HS2’ lobby, who believe the line is unnecessary and will be a ‘white elephant’. The DfT had received 55,000 responses to its consultation, with comment both in favour and against the scheme. Anti-HS2 campaigners are calling for the investment to be made in local train and bus services, which will only leave the UK out in the cold when it comes to fast, efficient rail services. German, Spain and France has built high speed lines that have slashed journey times, and Poland is also planning new routes. Britain has just one route, from St Pancras to Folkestone.

Ms Greening called the line "the most significant transport infrastructure project since the building of the motorways".
"By following in the footsteps of the 19th Century railway pioneers, the government is signalling its commitment to providing 21st Century infrastructure and connections - laying the groundwork for long-term, sustainable economic growth," she said.

Construction of HS2 will not begin until 201x and the first phase of the line, a 90-mile section for which detailed plans have been released today (January 10, 2010) will not open until 2026.

A second phase of the line to connect Leeds and Manchester to HS2 would be the subject of a public consultation that will begin early in 2014, with a route chosen by the end of 2014.

Journey time savings will be:

London-Birmingham 45 mins (currently 85mins)
Birmingham-Leeds 57 mins (currently 2 hours)
Manchester-London 68 min (currenty 128 mins)

Even cities and towns off the HS2 network - like Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, Preston, Wigan, Lancaster, Newcastle, Darlington, York and Durham – will be served by high speed trains able to use both HS2 and existing intercity lines seamlessly to save up to an hour on journeys to London. HS2 will effectively act as a rail “motorway” network offering greater capacity and speed while not restricting train services to stations on the HS2 network.

Having upgraded the West Coast Main Line at a cost of £9bn and six years of disruption, a report from Network Rail has judged that given the projected increase in passenger numbers over the next ten years, there is no further scope to upgrade the WCML for additional capacity, similarly, rail upgrades and improvement on existing lines are no substitute to the long-term and sustainable capacity increase that HS2 provides.

The DfT statement adds:

• A high speed line will deliver £6.2bn more of economic benefits than a line running at conventional speed - and around £3.5 more revenues - at a cost of only £3bn more than building a conventional speed equivalent. HS2 will cost a total of £32.7bn.

• The benefit cost ratio (including wider economic benefits) for HS2 is £1.80-2.50 benefits for every £1 spent on the cost of the project. The BCR has been revised downwards slightly due to the current economic climate but remains convincing.

• A commitment to reducing the effects of HS2 will see 79 miles of the 140-mile line between London and Birmingham running in tunnels or cuttings. The 22.5 miles in tunnel announced today is a 55% increase in the amount of tunnelling in the consultation route.

• HS2 runs through 13 miles of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) but fresh mitigation measures announced today mean that less than two miles will be at or above surface level.

• HS2 will benefit rail, road and air users. It will free up capacity on existing rail routes for more commuter, regional and freight services. It will take an estimated 9m journeys off the road network and cut up to 4.5m air journeys each year.

• HS2 trains will be up to 400 metres long with 1,100 seats, travelling at speeds of up to 250mph. Double decker trains could be introduced to run on the HS2 network and would be compatible with HS1 and the Channel Tunnel. Services using HS2 and existing rail lines will use standard-size non-double decker high speed trains.