Boris Johnson is set to give HS2 the green light despite Tory fears
Boris Johnson is set to give HS2 the green light despite Tory fears – but trains will only be able to travel at 255mph top speed for HALF of the route
- A decision on the project is expected to be announced by the PM on Tuesday
- But it is thought he will refrain from giving full approval to the second phase
- His decision is expected to be accompanied by a major infrastructure package
- It may be soured by news that HS2 won’t be able to run at full speed for full line
- Assessments published by the Department for Transport revealed shock news
The Prime Minister is set to give controversial rail link HS2 the go-ahead this week, it has been reported – despite fears over spiraling costs and news that trains will only be able to travel at their 255mph top speed for half of the route.
Boris Johnson’s expected decision will come after months of bitter rowing over whether to continue with the scheme which will create a high speed link between London with Birmingham.
A decision on the project, which has seen estimated costs soar to more than three times the budget at £100 billion, is expected to be made on Tuesday.
Should Mr Johnson give the go-ahead to the line, despite strong opposition from at least 60 Tory MPs, he will refrain from giving full approval to the second phase – lines north of Birmingham to Manchester and Leeds.
Boris Johnson’s expected decision will come after months of bitter rowing over whether to continue with the scheme which will create a high speed link between London with Birmingham (Mr Johnson is pictured outside Downing Street last week)
The HS2 route would initially link London and Birmingham with the second phase of the project then heading north to Manchester and Leeds
His decision is expected to be accompanied by a major infrastructure package focused on improving transport connections in the north of England this week, reports The Guardian.
But news of HS2’s expected approval may be soured by the revelation that trains will be only able to travel at their top speed of 225 miles per hour on around half of the 134-mile route.
Assessments published by the Department for Transport show that trains will only operate at their full speed on 68 miles – between Amersham and the proposed interchange station at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham.
Lord Tony Berkeley, a former deputy chairman of Mr Johnson’s review into the scheme, explained that speeds could not be as high elsewhere because the tunnels were not being built big enough to allow for it.
Dame Cheryl Gillan, a former Tory Cabinet minister and a keen opponent of HS2, told The Sunday Telegraph: ‘One of the justifications was speed and what is now painfully obvious, to keep the costs down both in what they construct and in what they are doing, the speed is going to have to come right down.
‘The very raison d’être behind the original justification for the project has gone.’
Lord Tony Berkeley (pictured), a former deputy chairman of Mr Johnson’s review into the scheme, explained that speeds could not be as high elsewhere because the tunnels were not being built big enough to allow for it
HS2 would allow trains to travel at speeds of up to 250mph. That would mean much faster journeys between key UK cities. The graphic shows times for HS2 passengers (in red) verses the current times (in blue)
The hugely controversial project – originally due to link London with Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds by 2032/33 – has become a litmus test of Mr Johnson’s determination to level up the North/ South economies.
Not all will be happy to see the scheme approved however. Critics inside and outside Westminster want it to be axed on financial and environmental grounds.
On Wednesday, the TaxPayers Alliance reiterated its opinion that it is too expensive and should be abandoned.
The estimated worst-case cost of HS2 is currently estimated at £106billion, but the TPA suggested it could eventually reach £150billion.
In a letter to Boris Johnson it urged a rethink, writing that ‘given the undoubtedly rising costs, it is prudent to consider the deliverability of the project’.
‘We are concerned that it may be difficult to deliver in its current form, despite significant increases in budget,’ it added.
Ministers have warned that abandoning the high-speed rail proposals would cost billions in compensations as well as leaving some of the UK’s major construction companies on the brink of financial uncertainty.
But leading figures in Downing Street, including Dominic Cummings, believe it is a white elephant.
But politicians in the Midlands and north are urging him to continue with a project that they say will revitalise the economy.
The Whitehall spending watchdog last week said that HS2 is over budget and behind schedule because its complexity and risks were under-estimated.
The National Audit Office (NAO) warned that it is impossible to ‘estimate with certainty what the final cost could be’.
It published a report urging the Government and HS2 Ltd to be ‘transparent and provide realistic assessments’ in relation to the high-speed railway.
Critics inside and outside Westminster want the scheme to connect London with northern cities to be axed on financial and environmental grounds.
Dominic Cummings, pictured arriving in Downing Street earlier this week, is opposed to HS2 and has previously labelled the project a ‘disaster zone’
Rail row: Estimated costs for the HS2 rail link have tripled to more than £100billion
A Government-commissioned review led by former HS2 Ltd chairman Doug Oakervee leaked earlier this week stated that the project’s bill could reach £106billion.
But HS2 was only allocated £56billion in 2015.
Phase One between London and Birmingham was due to open in 2026 but full services are now forecast to start between 2031 and 2036.
The news come as Mr Johnson is expected to launch a major infrastructure package focused on improving transport connections in the north of England this week.
A decision on the controversial HS2 rail project will be taken ‘within days’, the Prime Minister has told Tory northern MPs.
The PM is set to say that investment is needed at all levels, with an emphasis on not just transport, but also taking in freeports and broadband initiatives.
The move comes after the PM spoke to a number of backbenchers last week, many elected by the Tory surge in traditional Northern Labour heartlands.
A Government source said: ‘HS2 is understandably an important part of this picture for many constituencies, and the PM reassured them he would be making a decision in “days”.’
The package is expected to see ministers announce projects set to receive a slice of £40 million for pilots of 5G technologies in rural areas.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps will require West Midlands Trains to deliver a £20 million package of improvements for passengers due to recent ‘poor performance’.
The investment will be directed at improving services and recruiting extra drivers.
It is understood Mr Shapps will remain in his position in the looming Cabinet reshuffle.
Downing Street is believed to be impressed by his ‘grip’ on the portfolio, according to sources.
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