Birmingham home for HS2 headquarters

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Birmingham is to become the home of HS2’s new construction headquarters.

The facility will employ up to 1,500 people, with the first phase set to open in 2015 – two years before the project’s target start date.

Although some employees will move up from HS2’s current base in London, the new HQ is expected to create many new highly skilled engineering and design jobs in the city, including track, stations and signalling disciplines.

The HS2 announcement is part of a wider regeneration strategy being launched in the city today (July 21).

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin and HS2 chairman David Higgins are meeting with Birmingham Council Leader Sir Albert Bore to unveil the Birmingham Curzon Urban Regeneration Company, which will lead the development of over 140 hectares of land around Curzon Street in the city centre.

The regeneration will include £130m to help deliver a further extension of the Midland Metro to Curzon Street and the planned HS2 hub.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said:  “HS2 is a vital part of our long-term economic plan. By locating the new HS2 engineering HQ in Birmingham we are bringing skilled job opportunities into the area, spreading HS2’s benefits beyond those using the new rail line.

“It is great news that Birmingham City Council has created a company specifically to focus on the regeneration opportunities created by HS2. It will bring new investment and work into the city, helping secure the future prosperity of the region and the country.”

David Higgins said: “The lasting impact of HS2 will, in the end, be determined by how successfully local authorities and regions use it as a catalyst to transform and develop not just their economies but also the look and feel of the areas it touches.

“The Birmingham Curzon Urban Regeneration Company will, therefore, be hugely important both for Birmingham and the rest of the West Midlands, and also as an example to the rest of the cities along the route.  I acknowledge and applaud the work that has gone on to get this far and wish it every success in the future.”

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