How much does the high-speed train cost in the UK?

HS2 was given a budget of £55.7 billion in 2015 but costs have since ballooned, hitting an estimated £98 billion in 2020. Since then, soaring inflation has pushed costs even higher. “For the first time in the lifetime of this project, we will have cut costs,” Sunak said.



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In a major infrastructure project such as this, the company in overall charge - HS2 Ltd - contracts out the work to a vast array of other companies. Companies contracted by HS2 Ltd in the early part of the project carried the risk associated with the work. That pushed prices up significantly.

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The high-speed rail will provide the greenest, safest and most efficient form of transport. Although the cost was said to be over 100bn the investment will provide a major boost to business and the economy; the faster rail inks will help reduce the north-south divide and overcome the externalities of car use.

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The number of trains running on HS2 will be almost halved and services will travel more slowly in a proposed shake-up of the £72bn line as ministers scramble to save money. Whitehall officials are considering reducing the number of trains from 18 to 10 an hour, insiders said.

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High Speed 2 (HS2) is a planned high-speed railway line in England, the first phase of which is under construction in stages and due for completion between 2029 and 2033, depending on approval for later stages.

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According to figures shared by The Times, HS2 will save people travelling between London and Birmingham around 36 minutes. The other routes, which have since been cancelled, could have saved travellers more than an hour on their trips.

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In fact, the only high speed network with a top speed similar to HS2's is in China, where trains can reach 350km per hour – still less than HS2's 360.

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The government previously said HS2 would cut Birmingham to London journey times from one hour 21 minutes, to 52 minutes. Before the link was scrapped, HS2 was projected to take an hour off Manchester to London journeys - from just over two hours to just over one hour.

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Japan: L0 Series Maglev (374 mph) Although not yet in regular service, this Japanese train, which is currently being developed and tested by the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central), holds the land speed record for rail vehicles, clocking in at 374 mph.

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At these costs, Obama's original high-?speed rail plan would require well over $1 trillion, while the USHSR's plan would need well over $3 trillion. Building a system longer than China's would cost at least $4 trillion.

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The new line reduced travel time by train between Berlin and Munich from 6 hours to 3 hours and 55 minutes. Construction began in 1996 and cost about €10 billion ($11.8 billion), making it the most expensive transport project in Germany since reunification.

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Other groups opposing HS2 include the HS2 Action Alliance, The Wildlife Trusts and the Woodland Trust. The group has a chairperson, a treasurer and a campaign manager, relying on donations to pay them. In 2011, it made a fundraiser to pay its campaign manager Joe Rukin.

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Environmental groups The Woodland Trust opposes the current route of the proposed High Speed 2 rail link because of its impact on ancient woodland. It reports that 108 ancient woods are threatened with loss or damage from the project.

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In his speech in Manchester, Mr Sunak said the economic case for the line was no longer justified due to spiralling costs. He said a new Network North would be prioritised instead of HS2.

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