HS2 eastern leg set to be cut back

The eastern leg of HS2 is set to be cut back and may be built only between Birmingham and East Midlands Parkway. In a preview announcement ahead of today’s formal launch of the Integrated Rail Plan, the Department for Transport stopped short of confirming the abandonment of most of the high speed line to Leeds, but spoke of a £96 billion investment in railways and ‘journey times which are the same as, similar to or faster than the original HS2 and Leeds-Manchester proposals’.

The DfT said its IRP had been drawn up ‘after it became clear that the full HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail schemes as originally proposed would not enter service until the early to mid-2040s’. Transport secretary Grant Shapps added: ‘The Integrated Rail Plan is designed to deliver for everyone, much sooner than under previous plans for rail schemes drawn up a decade ago, which no longer fit the way we travel today. Our plan will deliver a network that is fit for passengers today and for future generations – a network that works for every community and every passenger.’

The full plan is due to be published at 11.00 today.