The biggest blunder is cancelling phase 2 ie North of Birmingham to Manchester 

I don't argue that the capacity is needed.  But the project is a farce, and, beyond the capacity that it might produce, has very little benefit (unless you're a consultant or civil engineering contractor.  In which case you're right royally coining it)

How many times does it need repeating that the WCML is full & no more paths exist. That was the original plan for HS" to provide additional paths for both passenger & freight. One might argue that their biggest fault was in naming the project Hi-Speed 2.

How many times does it need repeating that the WCML is full & no more paths exist. That was the original plan for HS" to provide additional paths for both passenger & freight. One might argue that their biggest fault was in naming the project Hi-Speed 2.

And all to get from Birmingham to the outskirts of London quarter of an hour or so quicker.  If you didn't laugh, you'd cry

...but will carry a few more passengers.

Helps to put it into perspective - HS2 is now expected to cost more than NASA's Artemis moon mission!

From the BBC:


Click on the link to the BBC to view the latest update of their developing news item.

CfN.

HS2 failings blamed on high-speed focus and political pressure

The HS2 rail line failed due in part to a focus on achieving the highest possible speeds and political pressure, a review is expected to find.

The scheme has been undergoing a "reset", and in March Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander asked HS2 bosses to look at lowering top speeds to save money.

This latest report into HS2, expected to be published this week, is authored by former National Security Adviser Sir Stephen Lovegrove and has considered the implications for the civil service and public sector. Its findings are expected to agree with a previous review, external that HS2's so-called "original sins" included changing political priorities and ballooning costs.

The review is also expected to highlight the "gold-plating" of the high-speed concept, "resulting in [a] bespoke and highly engineered design".

In the coming days, Alexander is expected to confirm that trains won't start running by the current target date of 2033 and will also provide an updated price tag for the project. It has been widely expected that costs will exceed £100bn.

HS2's main purpose was to increase capacity on the rail network but it has suffered rising costs and delays.

Under the initial plans, first confirmed in 2012, the rail line would have run from London to Birmingham, and then on two separate lines to Leeds and Manchester.

However, in 2021, the government said it was cancelling the eastern leg going to Leeds. Two years later, the section between Manchester and Birmingham was also ditched.

In June 2025, Alexander said that after "a litany of failure" she was "drawing a line in the sand" and the government would get HS2 delivered.

Mark Wild, chief executive of the project's delivery company HS2 Ltd, was tasked with carrying out comprehensive "reset".

Earlier this year the transport secretary said she was "determined to explore every opportunity" to "bring down costs and delivery timetables" including reducing the top speeds of trains on the line.

HS2 had been designed to allow trains to run up to 360 km/h (224 mph), which would have made the line faster than any other conventional railway in the world. Most high-speed trains in the UK run at around 220 km/h, while HS1, the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, reaches speeds of up to 300 km/h.

Although it will be years before the railway opens, HS2 is in its peak construction phase. A number of key structures have been completed, for example the 10-mile tunnel under the Chilterns, and the Colne Valley viaduct.

As part of efforts to get the project back on track, HS2 Ltd has previously said it would slow or pause work such as the line towards Handsacre, so it could focus spend on areas which had fallen behind; notably the central section across Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire.

By way of a summary;

The Transport Secretary described the scheme as "an appalling mess".

'No estate agent will touch our Water Orton home due to HS2'


A total of 11 properties on Attleboro Lane have reported damage caused by HS2 construction

People living in a Warwickshire village on the path of HS2's railway line from London to Birmingham have described the "devastating" impact the project is having on their lives.

Linda Franklin and her husband Ed had planned to downsize their home in Water Orton once their three daughters had grown up but said, because of how close they live to the construction, "no estate agent will touch it".

The retired nurse, who lives on Attleboro Lane, claimed vibrations caused by heavy machinery had damaged their property: "It's destroyed our home, I'm embarrassed about home, it's falling apart."

HS2 said they engaged regularly with the local community and tried to minimise the local impact of the works. But 59-year-old Franklin said she had been "fobbed off" by the company.

The couple, who have lived at the property for 29 years, have cracks in their plaster, floor tiles, wall tiles and ceilings and have been quoted £7,000 for repairs. She said HS2 had acknowledged that it caused the damage, but only offered to pay half the cost when she submitted a claim. "I dread coming home, it's just destroying every part of it", she said.

When they have looked into selling their property, the feedback from estate agents was negative. "The minute they know where we are, they've said categorically because of HS2 they can't market it, nobody will put a mortgage on it, the only way we'll get a buyer is a cash buyer," Franklin said.

The couple are not prepared to sell their home below market value which means they are "stuck, we're just in limbo".

"On a good day it's frustrating, on a bad day it's devastating, I could cry", she said. The huge delays to the project have also added to her misery, she said, adding: "It feels like there's no end to it, there's no way out of it all."

Last year, the government confirmed the high-speed rail project would not be completed as planned by 2033.

HS2 said they acknowledged some people would experience effects as a result of construction and urged residents to continue to talk to local engagement teams.

(BBC article continues)

HS2 trains could run slower than planned to save money



HS2 high speed railway trains could be made to run slower than initially planned to keep costs down.

The government is to order the company building the project to consider lower speeds on the line from London to Birmingham, which has been hit by delays and cost overruns.

HS2's chief executive Mark Wild was expected to say this month the line would not be completed until after the current 2033 deadline and it would cost over £100bn in today's prices, but that announcement has now been delayed until after the May elections.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander is said to be weighing up all options to claw back as much time and money for the taxpayer as possible. Among the options is a lower initial operating speed on the line.

HS2 has been designed to allow trains to run at up to 360km/h (224mph). Department for Transport sources point out that this is faster than any other conventional railway in the world.

Most high speed trains in this country run at up to 200km/h (125mph), while those on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (HS1) operate at up to 300km/h.

This means HS2 trains could not be tested at their intended operating speeds until a bespoke test track, or the railway itself is complete, something DfT sources claim would delay completion of the project by several years and cost billions of pounds.

The alternative, they say, would be to send trains to China to be tested on existing tracks there.

The government has been highly critical of decisions taken by previous administrations. Last year, the Transport Secretary described the scheme as "an appalling mess".

The Conservatives have been approached for comment.

Wild had previously worked as chief executive of Crossrail, the project that became London's Elizabeth Line. He was appointed as chief executive of HS2 under the previous government in May 2024 to oversee the completion of the railway.

Wild has spent more than a year working on a "reset" of the entire project which is meant to set out a realistic schedule and budget for delivering the line.

A number of major developments, including tunnels and bridges, have been built along the line but it is still years away from completion.

HS2 was originally envisaged as a high-speed railway that would connect London with Leeds and Manchester. However, the sections north of Birmingham were subsequently cancelled.

Under current plans, HS2 trains will travel from Birmingham to Manchester, but at reduced speed on the existing West Coast Main Line.

Leamside Line agreement between Gateshead and County Durham signed 'subject to value for money'


North East Mayor Kim McGuinness (left) and Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander met in the region to sign the agreement

An agreement to reopen a regional rail line has been signed by the transport secretary, subject to the assurance that it delivers good value for money.

Further development work on the Leamside Line, which runs from Pelaw in Gateshead to Tursdale in County Durham, is set to progress as part of the Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) initiative.

Regional politicians said the line could provide train links for 100,000 people in the north-east of England, after it closed to passengers in the 1960s.

The document stated the government would ensure resources were available for the Leamside Line reopening "subject to agreement of that business case and assurance that this delivers good value for money".

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander met Labour's North East Mayor Kim McGuinness on Thursday to progress the long-awaited proposal, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Funding was agreed in 2025 for a restoration of the northern section of the disused route as part of a new Washington loop of the Tyne and Wear Metro.

The document stated the government would work with the North East on the business case for the remainder of the proposed Leamside Line reopening, including considering better connectivity for Sunderland.


A map showing the potential stations on the Leamside Line, including the planned Metro line to Washington

As well as allowing for new train services through Ferryhill, Sincliffe, Belmont, West Rainton and Penshaw, the route could also provide an alternative path for freight trains to free up more capacity on the congested East Coast Main Line between York and Newcastle.

The NPR scheme also includes plans to improve rail services from Durham, Darlington and Newcastle.

Alexander said: "We're giving the region the support it needs to unlock the full economic and social benefits for its people."

McGuinness added: "For the first time in decades, the new line will give communities a rail link which will be transformational for local people, in the same way the Northumberland Line has been for South East Northumberland."

One Uy Hoang has captured, for Google Streetview, a glimpse of actual tangible HS2 phase 2a embankment - from the towpath of the Staffs and Worcs Canal.

Mark

https://tinyurl.com/3vje36vw

RAIL understands that the DfT still holds the land between Birmingham and Crewe with HS2’s compulsory purchase order powers for the now-cancelled Phase 2 expire on February 11. It’s thought discussions are under way to decide how to proceed.

As the present platforms at Manchester Picc are already at high level (The Metrolink trams in the undercroft are at ground level), I would be interested to see how that would work.

I remember seeing pictures of Mayfield and seem to remember it existing quite recently. any scope there?

The original plan had HS2 going to high-level platforms at Manchester Piccadilly, so will be interesting to see what the proposal is for Manchester 

New Birmingham-Manchester rail link to be proposed


The Northern Powerhouse rail project is aimed at cutting travel times between northern cities and towns

The government is set to announce its intention to build a new rail link between Birmingham and Manchester, the BBC understands.

Previous plans for the HS2 high-speed rail line had included a line between the two cities, but that part of the project was scrapped by Rishi Sunak's government.

On Wednesday, the government is also expected to confirm proposals for new and improved rail links across the North of England in a scheme known as Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR). Little detail about a new Birmingham to Manchester route is anticipated, other than the intention to build it after NPR is completed, meaning it may not happen for decades.

Plans to bring high-speed rail to the north of England were first put forward by former Conservative chancellor George Osborne in 2014.

A new rail line between Liverpool and Manchester is seen a central piece of the overall Northern Powerhouse rail project, which is aimed at cutting travel times between northern cities and towns as well as boosting the UK economy outside of London. But expected announcements from the current government were put on ice several times last year due to cost concerns.

Insiders said an extended review process of the project was under way in a bid to avoid mistakes made with HS2, which has been dogged by problems and costly delays.

HS2 is currently tens of billions of pounds over budget and around a decade behind schedule. Reports state that the now-shortened line between Birmingham and London could cost £81bn. Accounting for inflation, that would mean at least £100bn will be spent but only 135 miles of railway built.

HS2 Ltd, the company created by the Department for Transport, has accepted it failed to keep overall costs under control and said delivery has not matched what it described as the unrealistic early expectations.

HS2 bought hundreds of people’s homes – and now makes millions renting them out

HS2 is raking in £14m a year as a landlord, including letting out homes bought along the cancelled legs of the railway.

Of the 782 homes which have been voluntarily bought along the route of the high-speed railway since 2012, when the project began, 602 have been rented out, data released to The Telegraph under Freedom of Information rules showed.

Nearly half of the rental properties are on the cancelled legs – Phase 2 – of the project, which would have run from Birmingham to Manchester and Leeds but was scrapped in 2023 under the then prime minister Rishi Sunak.

Between Birmingham and Crewe, 121 of the 122 homes bought have been rented.

The average monthly rent for homes along Phase 1, between London and Birmingham, is more than £2,100, while for the second leg up to Manchester, average monthly rents are lower, at £1,733.

Taking the average rent from Phase 1 and Phase 2, this means HS2 Ltd – the company responsible for delivering the project – is making more than £14.1m a year as a landlord. Meanwhile, the project is projected to cost the taxpayer £81bn.

Joanna Marchong, of the Adam Smith Institute think tank, said: “It is unlikely that these funds are being channelled back into the Exchequer, or whether they are contributing to lowering the cost of this doomed mega-project.

“HS2 should explain why it is undertaking this practice and whether these rents are offsetting taxpayer funding or just being recirculated for executive bonuses.”

Penny Gaines, chairman of campaign group Stop HS2, said: “£14m from rent might sound like a lot of money, but it is dwarfed by the ongoing cost of HS2. The latest figures show that HS2 cost the Government more than £7bn for the last year, so however much they have taken in rent, it’s a drop in the ocean compared to the continuing cost of HS2.”

“Meanwhile, the Government is about to start selling off land and properties it purchased for HS2. Stop HS2 thinks that they should be offered back to the original owners at the price HS2 paid for it.”

Ms Gaines added: “It looks like HS2 will end up being a vastly extravagant shuttle service from the suburbs of London to somewhere near the centre of Birmingham. They should put the whole project out of its misery and cancel it entirely as soon as possible.”

Most of the rental contracts are periodic – meaning they renew month to month or over a set time frame – although some are guaranteed for as long as two years.

But the renters will not benefit from the changes brought in by the Renters’ Rights Act, which will ban Section 21 “no-fault” eviction notices and outlaw fixed-term contracts. This is because the properties are Crown tenancies.

An HS2 source confirmed that it would comply with all applicable changes introduced by the Renters’ Rights Act.

These requirements could delay any later sell-off of the purchased homes, with court delays running to several months. Previously, HS2 allowed those who sold their homes to the railway to “rent back” the property until work commenced.

The rail project – which was first proposed 13 years ago – will not be in operation until at least 2033, following delays and changed plans.

In October 2023, the then prime minister Rishi Sunak cancelled the Birmingham to Manchester leg of the route, with Sir Keir Starmer’s administration confirming a year later that it would not revive the full project. It was reported at the time that £600m had already been spent on properties along the northern route.

The eastern leg of the original HS2 plans, which would have run from Birmingham to Leeds, was cancelled in 2021.

The scheme, approved in 2012 in its original three-pronged form between London, Manchester and Leeds, was expected to cost £33bn. This was revised up to £57.5bn in 2015, with the final cost now estimated at £81bn in 2019 prices.

Once inflation has been taken into account, this represents a final bill of more than £100bn.

The chief executive of HS2, Mark Wild, is overseeing a cost-cutting reset, which will deliver new estimates of the total cost of the project. He is expected to deliver an update to ministers in January.

In November, it was announced that HS2 was planning a fire sale of surplus land in an effort to offload land that is no longer required around stations and the main depot on the 140-mile London to Birmingham line.

The announcement, which contradicted original plans to hold on to the land until the line was open, came months after Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander described the project as an “appalling mess”, and said its opening would be delayed beyond 2033.

Parliamentary powers allowing the Government to begin work on the cancelled line to Crewe will expire early next year. A link with the West Coast Mainline has been delayed for at least four years.

Labour has committed to Northern Powerhouse Rail, with Rachel Reeves reiterating this at the Budget last month, but details on funding and routes are light.

A spokesman for HS2 Ltd said: “Rent charged on properties acquired for HS2 is income for the taxpayer – ultimately offsetting costs incurred by the project.

“Hundreds of properties spanning a variety of prices were voluntarily sold to the Government for the new high-speed rail network.

“Routing the line through less populated rural areas meant that large, detached dwellings situated on their own land formed a significant number of total purchases. As a result, the concentration of high-value properties in our rental portfolio affects average rental prices. Wherever possible, they are let out at market rates.”

A DfT spokesman said: “We will dispose of surplus property in a sensitive and sensible way, including developing a disposal strategy that ensures we do not flood local markets and achieve the best outcome for the taxpayer.”

To save time on reading the whole article I will summarise - it's going to cost a lot more and take a lot longer.

HS2 goal to be running by 2033 'cannot be met'


Earlier this year, HS2 CEO Mark Wild acknowledged that construction had been "harder than thought" and "needed a reset"

HS2 has confirmed that its aim to get trains running between Birmingham and London between 2029 and 2033 "cannot be achieved".

Birmingham's Curzon Street Station is currently taking shape in the heart of the city but the divisive high-speed railway project has been plagued by serious challenges.

Earlier this year, HS2 CEO Mark Wild acknowledged that construction had been "harder than thought" and "needed a reset" involving a review of the project's cost and schedule.

In an end of year update, HS2 insisted that significant progress had been made throughout 2025 with the project now at an "advanced stage of a comprehensive reset". However, it went on to say that Mr Wild had "provided advice" to the government confirming that the railway's 2029/2033 opening schedule could not be achieved. "HS2 Ltd has since been finalising a new range of credible cost and schedule estimates," a statement read.

In this latest update, Mr Wild said he made a commitment to address "the failures of the past and get HS2 on track".

"It's clear that we can only do so with a fundamental reset," he continued. "Over the last year we've been through the programme with a fine tooth comb and we're now very close to establishing a clear path forward. We've shown what can be done and I expect that to continue throughout 2026 and beyond as we deliver HS2 as safely and efficiently as possible and for the lowest reasonable cost."

A number of changes have been made already as part of the reset, including "toughening up" cost controls; strengthening the leadership team and reshaping HS2 into a "less bureaucratic organisation". It has also established a new construction schedule to prioritise completing the initial phase of the railway between Old Oak Common in London and Birmingham.

In its latest update, HS2 said it was at "peak production", with all 23 miles of deep-bore tunnels having now been excavated on the opening section of the railway between Old Oak Common and Birmingham Curzon Street.

"Figures show 70% of the project's vast earthworks programme has now been delivered," it continued. "Almost 300,000 tonnes of steel has been used – 69% of that required for the railway. HS2 is now focused on completing the complex civil engineering programme across the 140-mile route, ahead of the next vital stage when the track, signalling and communications systems are installed."

HS2 also said it has increased the number of staff in front-line construction roles to help "drive productivity" and that construction partners exceeded many targets set for them this year.

I've been watching the new Alan Partridge series. You can probably guess that he's against HS2.

Whilst looking back on his career he said, "It's summer 2023, Britain is sweltering in record temperatures, HS2 has just been cancelled, correctly, in my view - who wants to get to the north quicker?" 

Huge HS2 viaduct slid into place over M6

A huge viaduct that will form part of the HS2 high speed rail line into Birmingham has been moved into place over the M6 motorway.

The 3,200-tonne structure, which is 230m long, will eventually carry two tracks on the London-to-Birmingham route.

Both carriageways on the M6 were closed between junctions four and 4A near Birmingham Airport at the weekend to allow it to be slid into place.

The motorway was reopened ahead of schedule at 12:30 BST on Sunday.

Travelling at 10 metres per hour, the East Deck viaduct was moved using a series of winches.

At a later date, another section will be added to extend the viaduct to 320m, while a parallel West Deck will be added to carry another pair of tracks.

The scaled down HS2 line, terminating at Birmingham, rather than further north, is expected to open between 2029 and 2033.

Prime Minister 'remains committed' to Northern Powerhouse Rail

The Prime Minister has said his government "remains committed" to Northern Powerhouse Rail amid recent uncertainty over the major infrastructure project.

It comes after plans to extend high-speed rail across the north of England were delayed further, which the BBC understands was due to concerns over long-term costs.

Sir Keir Starmer said he wanted to "get it right" following the scrapping of HS2's northern phases. "While I do understand the frustration, I think that anyone who looks at the mess the last government made of HS2 would say getting it right matters rather than taking decisions that unravel like HS2," he added.

Northern Powerhouse Rail aims to cut journey times between northern towns and cities, including those in Yorkshire. It would include infrastructure upgrades and new lines but is a plan that numerous politicians have failed to deliver.

The prime minister said £3.5bn had been invested into the upgrade of the existing line, which was announced in the last budget.

On losing ground to Reform in Yorkshire, Sir Keir said people needed to decide whether they wanted the "toxic divide" that he says that party offers.

"You can have patriotic national renewal with Labour – or the politics of grievance which is Reform – where they want to trade on the problems not fix the problems because if we were to fix the problems their whole reason to exist dies away," he said. "We need to make our argument about what we're doing, also we need to remind people what we have done. It takes time to unpick 14 years of failure."

Again, due to cost.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckge94030g7o

"Across Europe, every other country connects its big cities by modern high-speed rail," said Greater Manchester's Labour mayor. "

Reform 'would scrap' high-speed northern rail line

A Reform UK government would scrap plans to build the Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) link, its deputy leader has said.

In a report to the right-leaning Policy Exchange think tank, Richard Tice said companies considering bidding for contracts to build east-to-west high-speed rail links should "not bother".

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham rejected Tice's comments and suggested Reform UK wanted a "second-class railway" for the north of England.

The government also said northern England had been stuck with "second-rate" transport links for too long, and that this was "leaving communities cut off and holding back growth".

The NPR is a project to boost rail services going east to west across northern England, and was first proposed by former Tory chancellor George Osbourne in 2014 before being shelved under Boris Johnson's administration.

Labour is expected to announce the return of the scheme within the next few weeks.

Tice said a Reform UK government would "spend the money instead on things the country needs more". Citing the "billions in overspending" related to HS2, he described the government's expected commitment to more high-speed rail links as "insanity".

The Policy Exchange report proposed a set of alternative schemes, including a Manchester version of London's Elizabeth Line. It predicted NPR would be an "even greater train crash" than HS2, as a new line between Liverpool and Manchester could cost £30bn.

Researchers warned journeys between the cities on this line would take one minute longer than the fastest current services - which are 34 minutes - because it would also serve Manchester Airport.

Policy Exchange claimed the "crisis in HS2 is even worse than ministers admit", as the "true cost" for the line between London and Birmingham is "up to 22%" higher than the amount declared to Parliament.

A spokesperson for HS2 Ltd said: "We do not recognise these claims. HS2 Ltd is committed to the highest levels of transparency and our accounts are extensively audited by the National Audit Office."

Tice said: "Even as the historic disaster of HS2 blows through more billions in overspending and more years of delay, even as it sucks money from things the country actually needs, even as taxes on people and business rise, ministers are about to commit to further high-speed rail schemes which could make HS2's problems and price tag look trivial."

But Burnham said Tice and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage were both "creatures of the London establishment" and he was not "surprised in the slightest" to hear of their opposition to NPR. "Across Europe, every other country connects its big cities by modern high-speed rail," said Greater Manchester's Labour mayor. "But, like the Conservatives before them, the Reform party seems to believe that this should be a privilege only conferred on the southern half of the UK. We have higher ambitions for the North than them."

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "The North has been stuck with second-rate transport for too long, leaving communities cut off and holding back growth. The government is delivering the transport infrastructure needed for faster and more reliable journeys to create jobs and deliver stronger growth – such as the Transpennine Route Upgrade which is already delivering more efficient journeys between Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds and York. We will set out our ambitions for Northern Powerhouse Rail in the near future."

A link to a thread on Bluesky that puts out feelers re. HS2 phase 2a...

Mark

https://bsky.app/profile/roadscholar.bsky.social/post/3luxcviohgc2g

HS2 tenants reveal problems over rent and repairs



When Rob Taylor first moved into his HS2-owned barn conversion in the Warwickshire hamlet of Gilson, it was his "little piece of heaven".

Ten years later, the area is surrounded by the High Speed Two works, with road closures, dust and noise now part and parcel of everyday life.

Despite the surroundings, he has had two large rent increases in quick succession - £250 a month last year and £400 a month this year. "It's crazy, I don't know who could afford it," My Taylor said.

HS2 said it carries out rent reviews in line with tenancy agreements, and that several properties, including Gilson, were historically let below market value to account for their proximity to major construction activity.

But the heating engineer said he cannot see how Carter Jonas, the company that manages the properties on behalf of HS2, can justify the rise. "We're in the middle of a 360 building site and it gets more and more intense."

He also accuses the company of failing to address several maintenance issues, including his garden decking which he says still hasn't been replaced three years after it was removed.

"It doesn't matter how much I complain, nothing happens."  He added it was sad to see the house "rolling into poor condition", with threadbare carpets, loose brickwork on an external wall and leaks all being ignored.

HS2 bought up hundreds of homes along the high-speed rail route, letting out those it didn't demolish and said it had to balance tenant circumstances with its responsibility to deliver value for public money.

Mr Taylor is among a number of tenants in Gilson who have contacted the local MP, Rachel Taylor, who represents North Warwickshire and Bedworth.

She has written a letter to HS2 demanding answers, and also raised it in a meeting with them recently. "There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason as to how they can put the rent up by so much and not carry out essential repairs," she said.

In a statement, HS2 said they were increasing the rent in line with market conditions but she argued there should be an element of compensation for people living with the High Speed Two works on their doorstep.

She is also critical of Carter Jonas and the way it has treated people and said it was "failing" in its role as managing agent.

Judging by Hendy's comments, it would appear that the 225mph running speed was the greatest "specification extravagance" of them all! 

The government has made the demise of domestic air travel an explicit policy target for the first time by aiming to replace short-haul flights with a new 250mph high-speed rail network.

HS2 was conceived to provide extra capacity (sorely needed in many places, not just on the London to Birmingham route) and to be fit for the future

Lord Hendy now saying that it didn't need to be constructed with such high speed limits in mind does not fully explain the tunnels, many of which are for NIMBY reasons, the viaducts instead of earthworks, the slab track, or the bat tunnel, and several other specification extravagances

London to Birmingham is 118 miles
At 225 m.p.h., that's 32 minutes
At 180 m.p.h., it's 40 minutes
At 140 m.p.h., it's 51 minutes
And at 125 m.p.h. its 57 minutes

Of course it will take longer - you have to allow for accelerating and breaking, and allow for the two minutes that you need to be there for closing of the doors, and time to get to and from the stations and platform.  Rather more I would ask about the freqency and how long you'll have to be at the station to check in before your train is called - one hopes not as long as Eurostar.

I find myself remaining of the personal opinion that 140 m.p.h. would have been quite fast enough, with half of the extra money spent to raise the speed limit on good access in and out of that backbone.

Questions - for what proportion of the journey will the trains be running at their top speed or even over 200 m.p.h., and are the ends engineered to a less fast standard - Old Oak Common to Perivale  - 4.5 miles - at 225 m.p.h. would take a minute and 12 seconds.

HS2 ran tens of billions of pounds over budget and will open years late because it was designed to be unnecessarily fast, MPs have been told.

Lord Hendy, the rail minister, made the claim as he criticised the decision for the route to be built for trains running at speeds of 225mph, faster than on most high-speed networks overseas.

He said: “It is hard to understand why there was such zealotry about the highest-speed, high-speed railway in a relatively small country when the origination of it was to relieve capacity [problems].

“The case for better connectivity is pretty clear. The West Coast Main Line was predicted to be nearly full, and it is nearly full and under huge pressure.

“But there are two questions that doesn’t answer. One is why we needed an exceptionally fast railway, rather than just a fast railway.

“The other is the speed of delivery. I’m not sure I can make the case that it was desperate. Why it was pursued with such speed – and now we are suffering the cost of it – is hard to say.”

Lord Hendy questioned why HS2 needed to be even faster than the High Speed 1 route that runs between London’s St Pancras International Station and the Channel Tunnel, which at 186mph, he said was “quite fast as it is” and the standard speed for European high-speed lines.

He said about one-third of the HS2 route runs underground or through cuttings in order to keep the line straight and maximise speed, which had created significant engineering challenges.

The former chairman of Network Rail, which manages the UK’s train tracks and major stations, told the House of Commons transport committee that civil engineering work that should have been completed by now was still only about 60pc complete, with just one-third of the wider scheme, including tracks, trains and overhead power lines, finished.

‘Appalling mess’

Last month, the Government said that the opening of HS2 would be delayed beyond 2033 after cost overruns swelled to £37bn, despite the northern half of the project being scrapped to save money.

Heidi Alexander, the Transport Secretary, said the scheme was an “appalling mess” following a “litany of failures” and could end up becoming the most expensive railway line in the world. Some £2bn alone was spent on its now-cancelled second phase to Manchester.

Alan Over, director general for major rail projects at the Department for Transport, told MPs that HS2 was built to such a high specification in part because of a political desire to go one better than Britain’s European rivals.

He said: “If you are going to build a new railway, you might as well make it faster than our historic railways. The speed helps a bit with the capacity as well, because you can get more trains through in the given amount of time.

“The question is, why did the country choose to do it faster than the French or faster than the Germans or faster than the Spanish? There was a bit of ‘we want to join the high-speed revolution’ and be as good as everyone else in that regard.”

Mr Over added: “It’s not bad to have a national ambition. But you have to understand the consequences, that you are then pushing the boundaries and introducing more risk, and that leads to more cost.”

He said that the HS2 was designed for trains faster than all but the speediest Japanese and Chinese models.

Mark Wild, who took over as HS2’s chief executive in December after running London’s Crossrail project, conceded that the project had been too ambitious but said there was now no choice but to persevere with the truncated plans.

He said: “The mistake made here is that the railway is just too fast and too stiff, and that has produced very, very significant civil engineering costs.

“We have clearly got into terrible trouble with the estimate. But the die is cast now and we have to make the best we can of it.”

More delay, more cost............

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy0wr7nw7wxo

HS2 reports subcontractor over alleged fraud

The company building the HS2 rail line between London and Birmingham has reported one of its subcontractors to the tax authorities over possible fraud.

Whistleblowers made allegations over the way pay was handled for some construction staff on the high-speed line.

HS2 Ltd said last month it was conducting its own investigation, looking into two firms who supplied it with workers. The company has now also referred the matter to HMRC.

The firms in question were providing workers to Balfour Beatty Vinci (BBV), a contractor for HS2.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander is expected to raise the issue in Parliament this week. It is the latest difficulty to beset the troubled giant rail infrastructure project.

HS2 has faced myriad challenges and spiralling costs since it was first announced in 2009.

It was originally designed to boost capacity on the railways between the north and south of England but the last, Conservative, government decided to scrap the second phase of the project, which included building lines to Manchester and Leeds.

Earlier this year whistleblowers flagged concerns over the way some subcontracted staff were being paid. They said self-employed workers had been falsely declared as salaried staff, with "fake" payslips submitted at a higher payrate. The allegations were first published in the i newspaper in May.

One of the labour suppliers is understood to remain suspended from new contracts while inquiries continue.

An HS2 spokesperson said: "We treat all whistleblower allegations seriously and are continuing to conduct our own investigation."

The firm said it encouraged anyone with relevant information to report it via confidential internal channels.

The Department for Transport said last month it had "a zero-tolerance attitude towards fraud, bribery, and corruption" and would ensure any claims of wrongdoing were thoroughly investigated.

Significant progress in excavating 8.4-mile-long HS2 tunnel under London - June 2025



Further significant progress in excavating the 8.4-mile-long Northolt Tunnel for HS2 was made when the third of four tunnel boring machines completed its work in the tunnel last Friday, 6th June.

Emily made the breakthrough after completing a 3.4-mile drive at Green Park Way in Greenford, west London, and the fourth TBM, Anne, is due to finish its boring this summer.

The second bore was completed by TBM Caroline in April this year.

Emily was named after Emily Sophia Taylor, who helped establish the Perivale Maternity Hospital in 1937 before becoming Ealing’s first female mayor in 1938.

It was launched in February 2024 and worked on one bore of the eastern section of the tunnel, from where it removed 775,000 tonnes of London Clay and installed 17,514 tunnel segments.

Four TBMs are being used to construct the Northolt Tunnel, with two TBMs building the eastern section from Victoria Road in North Acton and two TBMs building the western section from West Ruislip. Each TBM will finish its task at Green Park Way, from where it will be lifted out from its underground shaft.

Because of high water pressure in the ground at the Green Park Way site, the TBMs are finishing their drives in a reception can in the shaft, which allows pressure to be maintained while sealant is applied from the tunnel lining to prevent water ingress.

Emily was designed specifically for the soft London Clay of the tunnel. Built by Herrenknecht in Germany, it weighs 1,700 tonnes and has a 9.11m diameter cutterhead.

Three teams of 48 employed by HS2’s London Tunnels contractor, Skanska Costain STRABAG JV, worked around the clock to bore the tunnel, with Emily advancing at around 38 metres per day at peak production.

Excavated clay was removed from the tunnel on a conveyor system to the London Logistics Hub at Willesden Euro Terminal, then transported by rail and reused at sites in Cambridgeshire, Kent and Warwickshire.

The excavated tunnel shaft was lined with concrete segments, each weighing up to 7 tonnes, and made at Hartlepool in County Durham by STRABAG.

HS2 tunnel machine breaks through for milestone

A giant HS2 boring machine has broken through to complete the first section of a three and-a-half mile (5.6km) tunnel on the route's approach into Birmingham.

The 125m (137yd) long, 1,600-tonne machine emerged on Friday morning after 652 days and nights of construction work.

The device was named Mary Ann by the local community in a nod to the Warwickshire-born writer George Eliot, which was the pen name of Mary Ann Evans.

The tunnel is the first of two bores of the Bromford Tunnel, running from Water Orton in north Warwickshire to Washwood Heath in Birmingham, passing under the area's motorway network and the River Tame. The breakthrough - HS2's first in Birmingham - was described by officials as a "significant milestone" for the line.

About 31,000 people are employed on the programme across the 140-mile (225km) route.

An HS2 spokesperson estimated that the second bore of the Bromford Tunnel would be completed later this year by another tunnel boring machine, this one named Elizabeth, after the social reformer and activist Dame Elizabeth Cadbury.



Following the excavation, teams will begin fitting out the tunnel with cross passages, concrete finishing works, base slabs and emergency and maintenance walkways.

At peak production, Mary Ann advanced at about 30m (98ft) each day, with teams reinforcing the tunnel with more than 20,000 pieces of concrete.

"Today's breakthrough is a significant milestone for the project and I'm immensely proud of the men and women who have worked day and night to bring Mary Ann and her crew home safely," said Mark Wild, HS2 Ltd's chief executive. "Washwood Heath is set to become one of the most important sites on the entire HS2 network - the point at which the railway will be operated, controlled and maintained using the very latest digital technology."

Mary Ann dug out about a million tonnes of soil to create the structure, which will become the longest railway tunnel in the West Midlands. The earth which was excavated will be reused to support construction of a nearby network of 13 viaducts, officials added.

This could prove calamitous for Bucks CC if HS2 appeals and wins.

So she isn't the transport spokesperson, doesn't have a station in her constituency which will be affected either way, and has started announcing things that are already under way, something traditionally done by the government rather than the opposition. The news that trains will not be stopping at a station that hasn't been built yet is unlikely to have champagne corks popping amongst even her more fervent supporters, and will only be true for as long as the various bodies involved think that trains stopping at OOC is not a good idea.

Paul Kohler - MP for Wimbledon - in the Commons
Baroness Pidgeon - in the Lords

Is Claire the LibDem Transport spokesman? That would explain why it was her that mentioned these?
I reckon it's the 175s (correct number of units).

Claire Young is MP for Thornbury and Yate, in a constituency which includes a section of the main London to South Wales line on it with a single station which at present does not have a regular scheduled local service to London, being served by only by trains from Cardiff running to and through Bristol toward the West Country - indeed as far as Penzance.

Are the 26 trains mentioned a fresh announcement or are they the class 175 units which will be very welcome.

Then either none do & the current timetable would still work on the main lines, OR this will mean that there will be fewer paths available per hour as some stop (so the more 'locals' - Cotswolds, Bristol (poss not, as XC direct would be quicker than via OOC), Cardiffs, WSMs) while others don't....

Bluesky post from an MP, an update on Old Oak Common services.

"After much lobbying from @libdems.org.uk MPs, I am glad to confirm Great Western Railway trains travelling from the South West to London Paddington will not stop at Old Oak Common as standard - as had been proposed - and that there will be an additional 26 trains added to the fleet."

Mark

Well - hopefully both the PAC and vast number of UK-knockers might take some comfort from this take from DW (Germany's answer to BBC) -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlDChSmyf-0

Seems like it's a universal problem!

I think hourly 9/10-car IET diversions into Waterloo, in addition to the Euston ones, would make more sense but were ruled out, this Christmas at least, for a few reasons.   As well as the Westbury blockade there's nothing running between Woking and Basingstoke until 5th January so diversions from Exeter via Yeovil/Salisbury weren't possible.

What real difference would a short DMU running a handful of services a day through to Waterloo actually make in the grand scheme of things?  Not much I would suspect.

What real difference would a short DMU running a handful of services a day through to Waterloo actually make in the grand scheme of things?  Not much I would suspect.