Which areas will benefit from HS2?

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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HS2 will also play a crucial role delivering Northern Powerhouse Rail – the backbone for an integrated northern rail network. Together these better connections will help to level-up the country.

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The city centres of London, Birmingham, Manchester, and Leeds will be connected by 345 miles of new high-speed railway track. HS2 is expected to carry over 300,000 passengers a day – around 100 million a year, when fully operational. Explore the route on the HS2 website.

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From November 2021 to June 2022, substantial parts of HS2 were dropped. As part of the Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands, it was announced that most of the eastern leg of phase 2b from Birmingham via the East Midlands to Leeds/York would be dropped.

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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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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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HS2 blasts through sensitive wildlife sites, because the speed means the tracks need to be straight. Possible connections between HS2 and other railways, especially East West Railway, have been ignored. HS2 does not provide interconnectivity and is far from an integrated solution.

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Operation: HS2 will be powered by zero carbon electricity. Construction: Net zero for construction from 2035. Scope 3 emissions include all other indirect emissions in an organisation's value chain.

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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 will now eventually run from London to Birmingham Interchange, with branches to central Birmingham and Handsacre, near Lichfield. HS2 trains for Manchester, Liverpool and Scotland will join the West Coast Main Line at Handsacre.

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Britain only has a small section connecting London with the rail tunnel to mainland Europe. In terms of speed, HS2's planned top speed of 225 miles per hour (mph) could make it Europe's fastest rail network.

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In addition, the tracks, signals, rail cars and software made in the U.S. are costlier than imports, largely because the government has not funded rail the way European and Asian countries have, experts say.

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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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HS2 will free up capacity on the existing lines, enabling more local commuter services and more freight services – more freight trains will help take lorries off the road and provide environmental benefits. The project has had a negative effect on economic, social and environmental factors.

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HS2 was originally envisaged to operate more trains an hour and higher speeds than any comparable high-speed line elsewhere in the world. It has been estimated that this pushed up costs by about 10 per cent.

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