Talks


are
set
to
take
place
between
transport
secretary
Mark
Harper
and
the
city
Mayors
of
Birmingham
and
Manchester,
when
they
will
present
a
plan
to
rescue
HS2
north
of
the
West
Midlands
to
Crewe
and
Manchester
by
introducing
private
investment.

Phases
2A
and
2B
were
axed
by
the
Prime
Minister
last
October,
on
the
grounds
that
they
were
too
expensive.

He
also
scrapped
the
remaining
link
to
the
East
Midlands,
which
was
originally
intended
to
continue
to
South
and
West
Yorkshire
but
was
then
terminated
at
East
Midlands
Parkway.
Work
on
the
link
from
Old
Oak
Common
in
west
London
to
Euston
has
also
been
‘paused’
for
two
years,
while
the
government
investigates
the
possibility
of
private
sector
funding.

Mayor
of
Birmingham
Andy
Street
was
speaking
to
the
BBC
when
work
began
at
Curzon
Street
yesterday,
which
will
be
the
central
Birmingham
terminus
for
HS2.

He
said
the
proposals
being
laid
before
the
transport
secretary
included
a
dedicated
line
between
Birmingham
and
Manchester,
but
that
it
was
‘highly
unlikely’
to
be
the
same
as
the
discarded
HS2
design,
and
he
did
not
rule
out
an
upgrade
to
the
existing
West
Coast
Main
Line
rather
than
construction
on
a
new
alignment. 

He
added
that
the
research
had
been
approved
by
the
Prime
Minister
but
further
details
are
unlikely
to
be
revealed,
at
least
until
after
next
week’s
meeting
with
the
transport
secretary.

However,
Mark
Harper
did
say
that
he
would
‘listen
with
an
open
mind’
to
the
Mayors’
proposals,
which
have
been
in
preparation
since
December.
The
group
carrying
out
this
work
is
chaired
by
former
Network
Rail
chief
executive
Sir
David
Higgins.