HS2 Slowing down trains costing £102.7bn
The UK’s High Speed 2 (HS2) project has undergone a change.
The UK’s High Speed 2 (HS2) project has undergone a change with trains not being able to begin running until 10 years from now, between 2036 and 2039. The government announced that trains will operate at lower speeds than initially planned. With this change, the cost is estimated at up to £102.7bn.
The initially conceived speed was set to be 360km/h (224mph) but has now been reduced to 320km/h. This decrease is intended to reset the already over-budgeted cost of this project. They plan to lower expenditure on track and maintenance over the long term, with a vastly scaled-back project now required for the project’s lifespan.
One student said:
“As a student coming from Southern England, HS2 would’ve made life far easier for university and job prospects. However, with the project being scaled back and trains not reaching the initial proposed speed, it will now be hard to fulfill my future prospects and opportunities.”
As reported by BBC, the Shadow transport minister Jerome Mayhew called for transport Minister Heidi Alexander and HS2 set out their plan in regard to budgeting and the timeline in place.
To date, more than £40 billion has been spent on the project, the government on all sides has agreed that any further loss of investment would result in financial loss without delivering any future benefits for the UK.