1. What is HS2?
HS2 is a high-speed, government-funded railway planned to connect major cities across the UK, and close the gap between the north and south of the country.
Approved 10 years ago at a supposed cost of £33 billion, it’s a multi-phase infrastructure project, starting at London’s Euston station. It should connect the capital to Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield with the fastest trains (402kmh) in Europe. Operating at these speeds, a London-Birmingham trip could be completed in just 52 minutes, slashing 30 minutes from today’s fastest journey.
A company called HS2 Limited was created to oversee operations, environmental analysis and compulsory purchases needed to clear the route. The timeline for key contracts and suppliers up to 2025 was announced earlier this year, and August saw tunnelling begin at the Northolt twin-bored tunnels — 17 km from London. The giant tunneling machines are nicknamed Florence and Cecilia.
2. Sounds good. What’s the problem?
Right from the start, cross-party opposition has dogged the project, with opponents from differing political and pressure group camps uniting against a common enemy.
Environmentalists like the Woodland Trust point out the destruction of ancient forests and wildlife habitats. Meanwhile the emissions benefits of getting people out of their cars and into trains, have been trashed by the UK government’s own reports: the railway has a predicted lifespan of 120 years and modelling predicts the project will not have reached carbon-neutrality in that time.
Even enthusiasts and experts in the transportation sector were unimpressed. Elon Musk openly laughed at the project’s lack of ambition and low-tech solutions back in 2012, saying it would be more than 50 years behind other countries’ solutions by the time it opened.
To make matters worse, the original budget has been blown out of the water, with top end forecasts putting the bill at £98 billion, almost three times the initial pricing.
As the UK economy suffers the pressure of the cost-of-living crisis, energy squeeze, and recent self-inflicted runs on the pound, many voters would rather see investment in the National Health Service and education, than a project increasingly viewed as a white elephant.
TV naturalist and campaigner Chris Packham provoked a debate in parliament with an online petition. Meanwhile activists have dug tunnels to live underground and interfere with HS2 work.
Unbelievably, the UK’s own chief economic advisor Matthew Sinclair has a history of undermining the project too. He said as far back as 2012 when chair of the Taxpayers Alliance, that HS2 had failed to convince markets.
When you actually survey people you find that business leaders are unconvinced by the case for the scheme, and the Midlands and Wales – the only place that will see a new connection to London this side of 2030 – is one of the areas where people are most in favour of cutting the project.
Matthew Sinclair, ConservativeHome
Meanwhile new PM Liz Truss, who tends to use her childhood growing up in Leeds to differentiate herself from the Eton and London-centric wing of the Conservative Party, has said she’s committed to improving rail services in the north. But HS2 has competition in the purse and the public imagination, as the so-called ‘Northern Powerhouse Rail’ network makes proposals on coast-to-coast networks. The result? More U-turns, inconclusive commitments and uncertainty.
