What is the real reason for HS2?

HS2 is not just about speed or getting to London more quickly, it is about bringing the Northern Powerhouse closer to the great cities of the Midlands. It will create more capacity for local services, the same way Northern Powerhouse Rail does for freight and local passengers across the Pennines.



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HS2 is designed to address three key problems facing the nation. HS2 will provide more capacity, cut carbon and deliver better connectivity.

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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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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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Organisations. Organisations that support the HS2 project include: The three major UK political parties: Conservative, Labour (albeit with some criticism of the proposed route) and the Liberal Democrats. In Labour's 2019 manifesto the party said it would extend the dedicated high-speed track to Scotland.

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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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How much will tickets cost? There is likely to be a premium of between 20 and 33 per cent for using the fast service. That would in theory push the cost of a London-Manchester Anytime ticket from £180 to £240 at 2020 prices, which works out at 6p per second.

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When it's fully operational, HS2 will connect 8 out of the UK's 10 major cities in a bid to bridge the north-south divide (no easy task) while boosting the economies of cities in the Midlands and up North. The largest cities on the list are Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds.

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While HS2 Ltd. has failed to meet the key schedule performance mark, it says it remains on course to complete the work well in the range of 2029 to 2033. But when the line will reach the central London terminal at Euston is still unknown. With costs rising, the government paused work at Euston in March.

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The HS2 route risks pushing nature closer to the brink of disaster, with irreversible damage to biodiversity and carbon sequestrating habitats and possible extinction of local species. Both the Government and HS2 acknowledge that the route cannot be made without far-reaching harm to the natural environment.

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HS2 was expected to cost between 72 billion and 98 billion pounds at 2019 prices, but since then the bill has been pushed up by inflation - which ran at around 18% in the construction industry last year, affecting materials like timber, steel and concrete.

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He continued that HS2 will help support economic growth and make a major contribution towards rebalancing the economy.[284] We take rebalancing the economy to mean stimulating growth outside of London and the South-East, rather than encouraging growth at the expense of London and the South-East.

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