High Speed 2 should be built from the north towards the south at the same time as the route is developed from London towards Birmingham, the Transport Select Committee has said.

In a report published last Friday the Committee also calls for the Department for Transport to articulate to the public that the estimated cost of the project is not £50Bn, but £28Bn. It adds that the Department should make clear that cost increases to date are due largely to the need to carry out more tunnelling and other mitigation measures to reduce the impact of the scheme on those living nearby.

The Committee also called on Local Enterprise Partnerships and local authorities to develop economic strategies which make the most out of HS2. The report adds that further work should be commissioned by HS2 Ltd to explore the regional economic benefits of high speed rail.

Committee chairman Louise Ellman MP said: “We support the strategic case for HS2 published recently by the Government. Having looked at this, and at new research by KPMG that examined the project’s possible regional economic benefits, we remain confident that construction of a new high speed line is the only way to deliver the step change in capacity on the West Coast Main Line needed to accommodate long term demand for both passengers and rail freight.”

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said he welcomes the Committee’s conclusion that a new north south railway is the best long term solution to increasing capacity.

(Photo: HS2)

To return to the newsletter, please close this window.