'HS2 has cut our village in half. Daily life has become a nightmare'
Nestled in the Warwickshire countryside, Burton Green is a quintessential English village, its history stretching back to the 1500s.
Yet, this serene community of around 600 residents now finds itself cleaved in two by the construction of the 700-metre Burton Green Tunnel, part of the High Speed 2 (HS2) rail project.
Images reveal a landscape transformed from its previous picturesque scenery, with heavy machinery and a sprawling construction site slicing through the village's heart, with locals calling it an 'eyesore building site.'
For many, life has become a 'daily nightmare,' with vibrating homes, dust-covered gardens, and the roar of machinery disrupting the rural tranquility.
Over the past five years, some residents have moved away, while those who remain grapple with the destruction of surrounding countryside.
Yet, the HS2 project, of which the Burton Green Tunnel is a key component, promises significant benefits that extend far beyond Warwickshire's borders.
Designed to connect London and the West Midlands, HS2 aims to slash journey times – cutting the Birmingham to London trip from 1 hour 21 minutes to just 49 minutes – while boosting rail capacity and fostering economic growth.
The project is touted as a catalyst for regional prosperity, creating jobs, upskilling workers, and injecting an estimated £10 billion into the West Midlands economy over a decade.
The Burton Green Tunnel itself, one of five eco-conscious 'green tunnels' on the route, will be topped with trees and shrubs to blend into the landscape, aiming to mitigate its environmental footprint.
As construction reaches its halfway mark, Burton Green residents have spoken out about the changes to their home as a result of HS2.
Grandmother-of-one Eileen Thompson, 77, a retired secretary, has lived in Burton Green for six years.
She said the work has been 'absolutely horrendous from the start' and claims her house has vibrated while work has been going on.
Thompson said: 'The dust, the dirt, the noise – all the diversions and road closures, it has literally split our village in two…
'We had three weeks of them blasting concrete posts out they had erected wrong and the noise and dirt from that was appalling.'
Thompson said as well as the 'destruction of the greenery', the scenery has changed dramatically, with walkways and a Victoria railway now replaced by 'mess'.
Hitting out at HS2, she said empty properties had been bought and knocked down, adding: 'It is just disgraceful how it has been planned and executed and I can't even see who its really going to be benefit.
'We're just going to end up with a shuttle train between Birmingham and London that doesn't quite go all the way into Birmingham or all the way into London.
'It is a waste of billions of pounds of our money and I think it will eventually be known one of the biggest scandals in Britain.'
Other residents say they are concerned that house prices, which currently average around £500,000, could plummet by as much as £100,000.
Dad-of-two Phil Fairclough, 55, said: 'When the plans were announced there was all this talk saying we could be the worst-affected by HS2.
'And if you look around here now I don't think you could argue that – we've had our little village bisected by a railway line nobody here wants.
'I've had friends move out, it's divided and torn a community up. It's an eyesore building site. We think house prices will drop by around £100,000 at least.'
A spokesperson for HS2 Ltd said they were 'working hard to reduce disruption' during the construction of the Burton Green Tunnel, and said that they have provided a new village hall for the community, as well as vowing to return much of the village to its former glory.
The spokesperson added: 'Excavated soil is being reused for nearby landscaping to avoid putting extra lorries on local roads and help blend the structure into the surrounding countryside.
'Once complete, the tunnel will shield neighbouring homes from noise and disturbance, with a new public green space for residents to enjoy.
'The existing Kenilworth greenway cycle and footpath will be reinstated along with new landscaping and tree planting to boost biodiversity and create new wildlife habitats.'
HS2's new chief executive, Mark Wild, appointed in December last year, warned that the project faces a 'very serious situation' and needs a 'fundamental reset.' However, last month he insisted the project has 'great value, intrinsic value', adding: 'HS2 will prove its worth'.
He was speaking after the Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said that HS2 is an example of 'how not to run a major project' and the government 'must not waste' its latest opportunity to reset the programme. In its damning report, the PAC said HS2 Ltd – the government-owned company responsible for building the high-speed railway – and the DfT have 'failed to work together effectively'.
The DfT's estimated cost of HS2 in November 2023 was in the range of £45 billion to £54 billion, while HS2 Ltd's latest estimate in June 2024 was between £54 billion and £66 billion. However, all these figures were in 2019 prices and once adjusted for inflation, the cost 'might be close to £80 billion', according to the report.
Earlier this month, Buckinghamshire Council rejected HS2's plan for an underground chamber and ditch in Wendover to manage groundwater, potentially delaying the Wendover Green Tunnel. The decision could cost taxpayers tens of millions of pounds.
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