HS2 given a sporting chance with a hat-trick of enquiries

It has already been reviewed twice. Now Britain’s high-speed rail program faces a third ministerial inquiry. That was this weekend’s shocking news for HS2, the giant engineering project to build a new line between London and Birmingham. With costs rising and government coffers draining, speculation is that the already pruned project could face further cuts.

Last week it was the shocking revelation that the line may end in west London, not central London. This time it’s a newspaper article in the Times of London, saying ministers concerned about the project’s rising costs have called for a wide-ranging review. Critics of the overall development have lobbied for the cause, but proponents have also hailed the possible review as a definitive endorsement of the new line.

Keeps getting knocked down, HS2 keeps getting up

If one thing isn’t changing about the Brits, it’s their resistance to change. No infrastructure project in the UK has ever run smoothly when faced with public opposition. HS2 faces its fair share of resistance. Some would say that the 140-mile (230 km) project has already had far more than its fair share. So far, the project has answered them all and continues its slow, expensive, but high-tech progress despite equally high-tech protests.

However, if there is one thing that still makes the project fail, it is the budget. Inflation has taken its toll on the UK Treasury. Projects across the country have been scrapped, scaled back or delayed. Every department in Westminster was ordered to cut their budgets. It should come as no surprise, then, that a review of the HS2 high-speed line has been called for, now carrying a nine-figure price tag, according to some sources. With costs in the construction industry rising even faster than the 10 percent inflation endured elsewhere in the economy, large construction projects are under pressure. Few, if any, will match HS2’s price point, which may well be in excess of £100 billion (€120 billion).

Requests, requests, requests

HS2 has already made two inquiries. In 2014, the Lords, the upper house of the UK Parliament, called for a review. At the time, supporters of the project still harbored hopes that a whole network of high-speed rail lines would be built, linking cities as far north as Edinburgh and Glasgow. These hopes were soon tempered, and the network was defined as a 330-mile (530 km) route in a “Y” formation serving London – Birmingham on the spine, with an “Eastern leg” to Nottingham, Sheffield and Leeds; and a western extension to join Manchester and the West Coast Main Line at a point to be determined.

Next, in 2019, under the direction of the penultimate Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, the government’s Department for Transport commissioned the study that became the Oakervee Review of HS2. The controversial and delayed report was released with a marginally positive endorsement, but with several conditions.

Andy Burnham wouldn’t be happy

It is highly unlikely that a request will result in a recommendation to abandon the project. Civil engineering work is well advanced along the entire backbone of the line and work appears to be underway at both the Birmingham Curzon Street terminal and Old Oak Common and Euston in London. (Last week) Concerns expressed about a permanent cut at Old Oak Common were raised following another revelation in the UK press last week.

Opportunities exist for descoping and cost reduction. For example, the entire construction project could be slowed down to spread the cost. Even slowing down the line speed would hardly affect the attractiveness of the line. The HS2 company has long downplayed its high-speed nature in favor of the extra capacity it will provide. This is something that could still be provided with a cheaper superstructure and a conventional rather than bespoke train fleet. Finally, mention it at the risk of inciting the wrath of everyone north of Curzon Street, not least Mayor Andy Burnham, but the links to Manchester and the West Coast Main Line put quite a strain on that ever-increasing budget.

Continue reading: