HS2 to reach Crewe six years early

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HS2 will be extended beyond the West Midlands to Crewe six years earlier than originally planned under plans announced by the UK government.

A separate hybrid bill will be prepared for what’s been called Phase 2a of the route between Birmingham and Crewe, allowing work to begin further north of the city than originally planned.

Ministers have said that the line, which would terminate at a new hub station in Crewe, could be delivered by 2027.

The Secretary of State, Patrick McLoughlin has now put in place safeguards to protect the new, updated preferred route from future development.

He said the government hopes to achieve Royal Assent for the Phase 1 hybrid bill by the end of next year, with which it could begin construction in 2017 as planned.

Phase 2a will connect with Phase 1 just north of Lichfield and joins up with the West Coast Main Line 700 metres south of Crewe station. Once connected, high-speed services between Crewe and London will cut journey times by 35 minutes.

Proposals to accelerate the construction up to Crewe were first put forward by HS2 chairman David Higgens in October 2014. He believes there are more sections of the network which could be delivered sooner.

In an announcement, Higgins said: “This is another significant milestone in the development of Britain’s high speed rail network.

“By accelerating the second phase between Birmingham and Crewe, we will bring the capacity, connectivity and regeneration benefits of HS2 to the North-West and Scotland years earlier than originally planned.

“It has also been very gratifying, as we develop the plans for Phase Two, to see a consensus grow among the city regions in the East Midlands and Yorkshire on the siting of future hub stations at Toton and Leeds city centre respectively. We all recognise the huge contribution this infrastructure investment can make in helping to rebalance our economy.

“There are a number of other sections of the consultation route which, it has been suggested, could bring benefits if delivered earlier than the rest of Phase Two in 2033.

“These include the section between Sheffield and Leeds, building HS2 from the north down, the western leg all the way to Manchester, or the section of route between Birmingham and the East Midlands. However, decisions have not yet been made on these sections of the Phase Two route, and we have still to finalise the scope of work needed to deliver them.

“That said, if, in the future, we identify ways that we can accelerate construction of other sections of the route, then we will.”

Image: Farrells vision for a ‘Northern Gateway’ at the new Crewe Hs2 hub.

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