Latest news with #HS2
The Guardian
5 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Resurrect HS2 northern leg to boost rail freight capacity, say UK manufacturers
Manufacturers will press ministers today to resurrect plans for a high-speed rail line reaching Leeds and Manchester as part of a large strategic investment to get lorries off Britain's roads and cut emissions. Business lobby group Make UK and Barclays Corporate Bank said research showed companies believe the move would significantly increase passenger numbers and free up capacity for rail freight on existing lines. A survey of 200 manufacturers showed that nine in 10 believe the original high-speed rail line HS2 should still go ahead, while a similar number said there should be greater investment in faster connections between Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Hull and Newcastle. HS2 has suffered huge cost overruns and is being overhauled under new management. The transport minister, Heidi Alexander, said this year that problems with the line would delay its opening beyond 2033. Many of Labour's regional mayors support moves to extend the line to Manchester to boost economic growth across the north of England. However, Keir Starmer, the prime minister, has indicated there is little cash available to extend HS2, even under 'HS2-lite' plans that would have allowed for more capacity north of Birmingham. Verity Davidge, the director of policy at Make UK, said: 'It's clear that the current levels of rail capacity aren't suitable for the levels of freight traffic the government is predicting in the future. 'As a result, if industry is to make greater use of rail then we need the extra capacity which a high-speed link for passenger traffic would free up. 'This would provide a valuable opportunity to invest in multi-mode hubs which would improve connectivity between our major ports and better integrate road and rail routes through the spine of the country.' Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion The survey found that road is overwhelmingly the main mode of transport for nine in 10 manufacturers, with six in 10 regarding road investment as critical for their just-in-time operations. This compares with just under half (46%) for investment in ports and just under four in 10 for rail. Lee Collinson, the head of manufacturing, transport and logistics at Barclays UK Corporate Bank, said: 'Upgrading and integrating our road, rail and port systems is crucial for boosting productivity, decarbonising transport and supporting long-term competitiveness.'
BBC News
11 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
HS2 was doomed to be a mess, say insiders
"I can't answer those questions currently," says Lord Peter Hendy. More than 15 years have passed since the idea to build a high-speed railway up the west coast of England was first announced, and I am asking the rail minister when it will be finished. And, crucially, how much it will he is making it very clear that nobody knows what the final bill for Britain's biggest infrastructure project might be. Does it concern him that the government remains committed to the railway despite this deep uncertainty? I ask. "Oh yeah, we're dead bothered by that. Of course you would be..."Currently tens of billions of pounds over budget and around a decade behind schedule, the Public Accounts Committee describes High Speed 2 (HS2) as a casebook example of how not to run a major 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. Many people involved - from civil servants, ministers and company insiders to HS2's original designers - have told me just how badly things went the project has suffered from mismanagement, misplaced optimism and failures when dealing with homeowners whose properties were in its path. But one chartered surveyor, who has been challenging HS2 for almost a decade, brought up another point. One that suggests that - far from this solely being down to poor decision-making - something greater was at play all along."There has always been a fundamental problem in this country with the cost of building anything," the surveyor says, "because we live on a small, highly populated, property-owning, democratic island."Which begs the question, was HS2 predestined to encounter major problems simply on the basis of the UK's geography and political system? And if that is the case, where should we go from here? Problems with the need for speed HS2 was initially conceived as a way to increase capacity on the West Coast Mainline; a tangled 700 miles of track between London and Glasgow, which was built in a patchwork fashion by competing Victorian Speed 2's early engineers proposed a vision of the future, making HS2 capable of running the fastest, most frequent trains in the up alongside the international alternatives, the plan was impressive: in France, high-speed trains run at 200 miles per hour; HS2 was to be built to withstand 250mph. In Japan, 12 trains run between Tokyo and Osaka every hour; HS2 would be capable of running 18 trains an hour going in and out of London Euston in that time. That's one every three minutes. To have any chance of doing this, however, the railway had to be as straight as possible. Slowing down to take bends around villages, woodland or canals wasn't an option. Faster trains also required more sophisticated junctions, and stronger slab government reviews now suggest this ambition had an insidious cultural impact - and that the vision to build the best possible line is what "drove the scope and dramatically increased cost."It also took the project away from the initial premise of increasing network capacity." Andrew Meaney is head of transport at the consultancy Oxera and advised the Oakervee review of HS2 that reported to government in suggests no analysis was done to set out comparisons of what the savings would be if trains ran at the slower speeds of Eurostar services in the south of England."I think those sorts of things should have been assessed in quite a lot of detail and a public conversation had about those trade-offs." A warning from the French But talking to HS2's original designers, there was a clear strategy behind this vaulting McNaughton, HS2's first technical director, remembers being at a conference in 2009 and hearing the chair of the French railway operator, Guillaume Pepy, deliver a is: "don't make the mistake of building yesterday's railway", with standards evolving, French high-speed trains could now go much faster than their tracks would bother building something that would already be out of date at the moment of completion? Mr McNaughton decided to future-proof the UK work by selecting an option that appeared capable of handling faster trains further into the understood that this would add roughly 10% to costs - and believed it would be worth it. 'You've cost us another hundred million' As politicians set about trying to get approval to make HS2 run straight and fast, they came across another of the route cut through rural constituencies, represented mostly by Conservative MPs, who made it clear to then-Prime Minister David Cameron that their approval for the project would require serious negotiation and picked something unusual to make it happen: a hybrid bill, only the third of its kind enacted since allow MPs to vote on whether a piece of infrastructure should go ahead, but those directly affected are given the right to petition against it and ask for details to be changed. Councils, businesses and individuals made their case in front of a government committee asking for everything from noise barriers to financial compensation for communities losing green space. Last-minute negotiations often took place in the corridors approach meant the bill was flexible - but critics have argued it was also needlessly complex and Geoffrey Clifton Brown was a Conservative MP and was one of the committee members who heard out petitions. "I remember very clearly one of the Secretaries of State for Transport, after an afternoon session, say, well done, Geoffrey, you've just cost us another couple of hundred million this afternoon." A spreadsheet shows the thousands of assurances which were added as a result - among them, £250,000 to insulate a church, £500,000 for a new park (on top of an extra £10m for a community fund), as well as £10,000 to renovate a listed drinking cost was added in order to avoid or compensate for individual inconvenience. One of the most expensive parts of these measures were the tunnels. Through public consultation and the hybrid bill, the design now features so many of them - along with noise barriers and cuttings, where track is laid below ground level - that on a 49-minute journey from London to Birmingham passengers will only have a view of the countryside for Ltd, the company created by the Department for Transport, accepts it failed to keep overall costs under control and says delivery has not matched what it describes as the unrealistic early expectations. Is the UK planning system to blame? Negotiation and compromise however, worked. The final vote for the first leg of HS2 between London and Birmingham was won by more than 350 votes in October 2013. The bill was supported across the main parties, and ministers understood HS2 had a clear road ahead."I was told that [the bill] basically gave the planning approval," says Patrick McLoughlin, who was the Transport Secretary between 2012 and 2016."Of course, it subsequently turns out that that was not the case." In reality, the hybrid bill only offered "deemed planning permission" - HS2 say they have since needed to acquire more than 8,000 further permissions from councils and other hasn't always been the case of Dobbins Lane in Buckinghamshire. In April, the local council considered planning permission for HS2 to upgrade a farm track running into a nearby field. This work was needed in order to build an underground box to monitor groundwater levels, which in turn was a requirement of a tunnel being dug through the nearby hills. Without it, HS2 warned, delays could cost tens of more than 800 local residents signed a petition against works because of a temporary increase in road traffic: 60 lorries would need to reach the site during a 12 week the request for planning permission was rejected - another potential cost added. Ed Lister, who was Deputy Mayor of London between 2011 and 2016 and later served as Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, blames the UK's planning system."You've got to break that log-jam," he argues. "If these are your big projects, then they have to go through."He wants changes to the judicial review system to make it harder to frustrate projects such as HS2 through the courts. Big questions to be confronted All of this is a reminder that building in Britain has always had its own unique challenges. France, for example, has more than 1,000 miles of high-speed rail - but it also has a greater land mass, with much more open empty countryside to sweep meanwhile, has nearly 30,000 miles of high-speed rail - but it also has a centralised power system and fewer protest brings it back to the chartered surveyor who observed, "We live on a small, highly populated, property-owning, democratic island".That in itself poses challenges - meaning that if Britain wants to build 'big' - whether it's a nuclear power station, reservoir or railway, we need to confront big questions as a society. How deep is our appetite for individuals to have their lives impacted in the name of national interest? How should we value century long investment in infrastructure? These are the questions that govern how our system works."The processes that we've got are so archaic and too costly and too complicated. There's surely got to be a quicker way of doing it," says the chartered surveyor. For Andrew Meaney, a fundamental problem is the way politicians communicate with the public."We don't have the confidence to say, right, this is what we're building and let's just go and get on and build it," he argues. "We tend to change our mind and we sort of bend with public opinion."For others, all these existential questions will always be secondary to the fact they think HS2 was simply the wrong project. "You've got to choose the right projects," argues Andrew Gilligan, who acted as a special advisor to Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak. "And this was the wrong project right from the start.""The answer to our transport crisis is lots of boring little things like bus lanes and tram systems and new stations," he continues, "and not one grand mega-project that is in fact only going to touch a handful of people in the country."If future governments did decide that small was the way forwards, the same fundamental issues of consent and compromise would still be ever present. Without answers HS2 will remain simply the latest project to be undone by political image credit: Christopher Furlong via Getty BBC InDepth is the home on the website and app for the best analysis, with fresh perspectives that challenge assumptions and deep reporting on the biggest issues of the day. And we showcase thought-provoking content from across BBC Sounds and iPlayer too. You can send us your feedback on the InDepth section by clicking on the button below.
BBC News
2 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Crewe and Nantwich MP calls for West Coast Main Line improvements
An MP has called on the government to make improvements to the West Coast Main Line to "show people across the North West that this government care about their future".Connor Naismith, the Labour MP for Crewe and Nantwich, spoke about issues on the line during a Westminster Hall debate and called for remodelling of Crewe also called for the government to "look carefully" at alternative proposals to HS2 put forward by the mayors of Greater Manchester and the West minister Lillian Greenwood said the government was "continuing to review options for enhancing rail connectivity in the Midlands and North". She added that more detail would be provided in the coming months. Naismith told a debate that the West Coast Main Line faced "critical problems" and said the issues were experienced by many attending the debate and their from across the political spectrum also spoke about issues they and their constituents had using the line including Labour's Jo Platt, Conservative Aphra Brandreth and Liberal Democrat Tim also spoke about capacity and said improvements would mean less congestion on the area's motorways."I again press the government to look carefully at the proposals developed by the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, the Mayor of the West Midlands, Richard Parker, and Arup and other stakeholders, namely the Midlands-North West rail link," he also called for upgrades to Crewe Station, saying it had seen "little investment since the 1980s"."Failure to do anything is simply not an option, so I politely ask the minister, what will the government do to flesh out the options that they are considering?" he said."Let us improve the main line, let us rebuild Crewe station, and let us show people across the North West that this government care about their future." In response, Greenwood said the government knew there were "real and very understandable concerns" about capacity between Manchester and Birmingham following the cancellation of phase two of HS2."I also understand the frustration - and, frankly, the anger - that this decision created for leaders and communities across the Midlands and the North," she said she set out to the House of Commons in January that the government would not reverse that cancellation."I also noted that we were, and are, continuing to review options for enhancing rail connectivity in the Midlands and the North. That work continues and is now supported by the clarity that the spending review has provided," she said she was unable to provide more detail at this stage but said the government "hope to say more in the coming months, including on the future of Northern Powerhouse Rail", which is a planned link between Manchester and Liverpool. Read more Cheshire stories from the BBC and follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
BRIAN READE: 'Welcome to Bonkers Britain, a joke of a country where I feel beaten and ungoverned'
With HS2, the Post Office scandal, Grenfell and train tickets just the tip of the iceberg, Brian Reade is fast losing his sense of humour Rarely has a quote from a High Court judge chimed so perfectly with the instincts of the masses. 'Am I going bonkers?' was the cracker uttered by Judge Mr Justice Chamberlain last November after he was told there had been a catastrophic leak by the MoD, which had put thousands of lives at risk, cost taxpayers potentially £7billion, and forced the UK to secretly fly 19,000 Afghans here to live permanently. And the government's response to that was to beg the judiciary to hide any knowledge of it from the British people by imposing the kind of court order favoured by footballers who don't want the world to know they're having sex with their brother's wife. To add unfathomable insult to life-threatening injury, the soldier who caused the calamity went unnamed, unpunished, and was moved sideways, and his boss, General Sir Gwyn Jenkins, was promoted to First Sea Lord. To answer your question, m'lud, no you're not going bonkers. It just feels that way living in a joke of a country where nothing seems to work any more, where everything that can go wrong goes wrong, and when it does, the self-serving cowards who run the show hide the truth from view, shift the blame and punish no one. Welcome to Omnishambles Britain. A country where every big construction project, like HS2, gets bogged down with red tape and skilled worker shortages, takes years longer than comparable countries and if finished, comes in billions over budget. A country where young people struggle to get on the housing ladder because we've built fewer houses in the past decade than the average Lego enthusiast, making rents eye-wateringly expensive and forcing many to live in their parents' spare room into their mid-30s. A country where you have to take out a second mortgage to get a peak-time train ticket to its capital and which empties its jails of criminals because it did nothing about them getting full. A country which sees itself as a world-leading economy yet has to crawl to the American president with a letter from a man with a crown on his head, pleading with him to visit his palace in the hope he doesn't hit us with tariffs. We are a nation that can't control our borders even though vowing to do so was the main reason voters allowed politicians to cause economic carnage by divorcing our European neighbours. A country that allows scandals like the Post Office, infected blood and Grenfell to happen, then tries to wheedle out of giving the victims recompense and justice. A nation that gets more angry about rappers supporting besieged Palestinians than the besiegers who are slaughtering them. A country where you wait 12 hours in NHS A&E corridors to get seen, the roads are riddled with potholes, local councils are going bankrupt, the welfare and care systems are broken, and the only thing that's growing is the national debt. I don't know about you but I've almost reached the point where I'm finding it hard to get angry any more. The daily revelations of systemic incompetence, embarrassing U-turns and grovelling apologies just leaves me feeling beaten and ungoverned. I'm now resigned to the fact that this country is well and truly up sh** creek without a paddle. And thanks to the profit-sucking, sewage-dumping charlatans who run our privatised water industries, a creek that is very shi**y indeed.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
HS2 has suffered ‘significant cost' from legal challenges by public bodies
HS2 has incurred 'significant cost' because public bodies have launched nine legal challenges against it, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said. The Cabinet minister noted that in 'almost all cases', the courts have found in favour of the high-speed rail scheme between London and Birmingham. HS2 Ltd was given the power to construct the railway when the High Speed Rail (London – West Midlands) Act received royal assent in February 2017. The most recent of the nine legal challenges the project has faced from other public bodies since then was launched by North Warwickshire Borough Council in relation to the extension of the under-construction Bromford Tunnel. In May, the High Court rejected the council's bid for a judicial review. Since royal assent was obtained, there have also been 25 appeals relating to the HS2 planning regime. In a six-monthly written update to Parliament on HS2, Ms Alexander acknowledged it is 'right there are checks and balances embedded in our legal and planning systems', but expressed concern these are being used to 'frustrate the delivery of consented projects'. She wrote: 'The delivery of HS2 has continued during this period to be the subject of both legal and planning challenges, which have added significant cost, uncertainty and potential for delay.' She added: 'The Government continues to monitor this issue closely and will consider further interventions where appropriate, alongside its wider work on planning reform.' Ms Alexander also announced that she has lifted safeguarding on the majority of land protected for HS2's former Phase 2b eastern leg between Birmingham and Leeds, which was cancelled in November 2021. Safeguarding is used to stop land from being developed in a way that would conflict with future schemes. More than 550 properties were acquired by HS2 Ltd ahead of the planned construction of Phase 2b's eastern section. Removing safeguarding means the process of selling them can begin. Former owners of property within the safeguarding zone, which was acquired by HS2 Ltd will be given the opportunity to buy it back at the current market value. HS2 has suffered repeated delays and soaring costs. Ms Alexander announced last month there was 'no route' to meet the target date of having HS2 services running by 2033. In her update to Parliament, the Secretary of State said her department is working with HS2 Ltd chief executive Mark Wild to 'reset' the project, with the aim of providing an 'updated delivery baseline and funding envelope in 2026'. She went on: 'Until this work is completed, this Government is not in a position to say with confidence how much HS2 will cost or when it will be delivered. 'That is a deeply unsatisfactory position, but it is necessary to complete the hard work we have embarked upon.' HS2 was originally planned to run between London and Birmingham, then on to Manchester and Leeds, but the project was severely curtailed by the Conservatives in power because of spiralling costs. The first phase was initially scheduled to open by the end of 2026, but this was later pushed back to between 2029 and 2033. In 2013, HS2 was estimated to cost £37.5 billion (at 2009 prices) for the entire planned network, including the now-scrapped extensions from Birmingham. In June last year, HS2 Ltd assessed the cost for the line between London and Birmingham would be up to £66 billion.
