HS2 rail link: Second phase is unveiled

Details are to be published today of exactly where twin extensions of the planned London to Birmingham HS2 line will pass on their way to Manchester and Leeds.

The high speed rail project, which will cost £32.7bn and is expected to be finished by 2033, is one of the coalition’s priorities as it seeks to kickstart the stagnant economic recovery.

Prime Minister David Cameron has claimed high speed rail will be an “engine for growth” that will create at least 100,000 jobs with new stations in Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield and the East Midlands.

One branch of the line is expected to run via Manchester Airport and include a spur to Crewe to help speed up journey times to Liverpool and Scotland by better connecting with conventional train services.

The other branch of the Y-shape extension could prove more controversial, with Sheffield expected to be served by a station at the Meadowhall shopping centre rather than the city centre.

Officials said interconnections would be improved at any stations sited outside cities.

A “parkway” station could be included at Toton between Nottingham and Derby.

But a proposed spur to Heathrow has been put on hold pending the results of Sir Howard Davies’ review of future airport capacity – which is not due to give a final report until the summer of 2015.

Instead, passengers heading to the world’s busiest airport will have to change onto the new London east-west Crossrail service for an 11-minute transfer to terminals.

The Department for Transport said the journey from Manchester to Birmingham would be reduced to 41 minutes and from Manchester to London to 1 hour 8 minutes – almost half the present times.

Leeds will be 57 minutes away from Birmingham compared to 1 hour 58 mins today, and 1hr 22mins away from London Euston, down from 2hrs 12 minutes – official projections say.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said the proposed routes were “a great starting point for the process of engagement
to follow”, and it would “deliver a priceless dividend” for the UK.

“While doing nothing would be the easy choice it would also be the irresponsible choice. This is an unparalleled opportunity to secure a step-change in Britain’s competitiveness and this Government will do everything possible to ensure that the towns and cities in the Midlands and the North get the connections they need and deserve to thrive,” he added.

The project has been welcomed by civic and business leaders in the region, who predict that the number of jobs created could in fact be far higher than the 100,000 cited by the DfT.

But it has also proved controversial, especially in picturesque Tory heartlands which will be affected, such as the Chilterns, infuriating MPs and countryside campaigners.

Conservatives in Chancellor George Osborne’s Tatton constituency have already indicated that they will object to any plans to route the line through parts of the Cheshire countryside.

Labour backs HS2 – which was begun under its administration – but says there are “worrying signs” that the timetable for delivering it is slipping.

The High Court is currently considering whether the first phase of the project, which will take high-speed trains from London to Birmingham, is legally flawed and needs to be reconsidered.

The challenge was taken to the court by campaigners who accused the Government of failing to undertake a “strategic environmental assessment” or arrange an adequate consultation process.