Get you up to speed: First HS2 trains delayed until 2036 as costs soar to £107 billion | News UK
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander announced significant delays and cost increases for the HS2 project, with trains now not expected to depart before 2036.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander stated in the Commons that the HS2 project will now only see trains departing after 2036, with costs soaring to between £87.7 and £102.7 billion.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander announced in the Commons that the HS2 project will not see trains depart before 2036, with costs now estimated between £87.7 and £102.7 billion.
What we know so far
The HS2 project is facing yet another delay, with the government confirming that trains will not commence operations before 2036, a setback from the previous estimate of 2033. The high-speed railway, aimed at enhancing connectivity between London and the West Midlands, has been beset by delays and escalating costs.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander addressed Parliament, revealing that the project’s costs have surged, now projected between £87.7 and £102.7 billion. She stated that two-thirds of the increased costs stem from missed works and inefficiencies, while inflation not adequately accounted for by previous Conservative governments has contributed to the overruns.
Alexander accused former administrations of mismanagement, describing the situation as a “slow motion car crash.” She expressed frustration on behalf of taxpayers, passengers, and those working on the railways, insisting that while cancelling the project is not viable, the current government is committed to getting it “off life support” and “on the road to recovery.” MPs have highlighted the ongoing disruptions faced by communities along the route, including traffic issues and outstanding payments to landowners.
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First HS2 trains won’t leave until 2036 after costs balloon to £107,000,000,000 | News UK
The HS2 saga continues after the government confirmed that the project will be delayed again while projected costs have increased.
The high-speed railway has been designed to make rail journeys quicker and smoother between London and destinations in the West Midlands, andoriginally, the North.
But it has been plagued by delays, cost issues and the scrapping of the nothern leg.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander revealed in the Commons today that trains are not able to depart before 2036, casting aside the earlier estimate of 2033.
Meanwhile, the costs of the megaproject are reaching eyewatering amounts, with projected estimates now between £87.7 and £102.7 billion.
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A chunk of the increased costs, around two thirds, us due to works being missed, underestimates and inefficient deliver, the Transport Secretary said. The rest was due to inflation which wasn’t afactored in regularly enough by previous Conservative governments, she added.
She hit out at the previous governments, accusing them of wasting taxpayer money.
The northern legs to Manchster via Crew, and to Leeds, were axed by the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Alexander said the previous governments have created a ‘slow motion car crash.’
‘If this seems like an obscene increase in time and cost, it is,’ she said, adding that she is ‘angry’ on behalf of taxpayers, passengers and those working on the railways.
MPs lambasted the project in Commons today, saying their constituents in areas with construction have faced disruption for years, including traffic nightmares due to road closures during construction, while some landowners are still waiting for payments for purchased land.
Transport Secretary said: ‘Taxpayers, passengers and communities along the route have been let down by years of mismanagement on HS2.
‘I share their anger about the waste and mess, but I am proud that this Government has worked with HS2’s new senior team to get this project off life support and on the road to recovery.
‘We will get the job done but we will also take every opportunity to save time and money in the process, getting a grip on delivery, controlling costs, and stripping out the complexity that’s plagued the project in the past.
‘We can and must build big infrastructure projects in Britain. But we also need competent people in charge of them. This is the same team that delivered the Elizabeth Line. We have done it before, we will do it again.’
Cancelling the entire project is not an option, Alexander suggested.
She said scrapping the project entirely would cost nearly as much as finishing it.