Today the chairman of HS2, Sir David Higgins, said by 2027 the high speed line should reach Crewe, where a new hub will be built, rather than Birmingham as originally planned. The £50bn first section of the high speed line will then go north of Crewe and be complete by 2030.
The
Institution of Engineering and Technology(
IET) has said consultation and planning to integrate high speed rail services into the existing ‘classic’ rail network and local transport systems must start this year to reduce the risk of disconnected strategies for HS2 and the existing rail network.
“One of the biggest benefits of HS2 is the economic redevelopment opportunities,” said the IET’s Jeremy Acklam.
“We’ve heard a lot about these opportunities for the major cities connected by the high speed line, but little or nothing about the potential wins for cities beyond the immediate confines of the HS2 network.
“There is great potential through the connections to the east and west coast main lines for cities other than Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds to benefit from HS2, but the challenges around realising these benefits need to be tackled now if these locations are not to fall behind.
“In addition, many of these smaller cities could be reached by HS2 trains moving to the classic railway network to complete their journey. But this will require new or significantly enhanced stations.”
The
IETis calling for an “urgent dialogue” between HS2, Network Rail, the Train Operating Companies and local authorities to fully understand the challenges that the arrival of high speed trains will bring to the classic railway network.
Acklam added: “My fear is that this dialogue could be left until the next Network Rail control period, which will be far too late.”
The
IETsaid planning is required to identify, develop and understand the impact of land use for intermediate station locations and cities beyond the network likely to be served by the high speed trains. This will prevent losing land to other developments before the HS2 services arrive.
In addition, northern cities need to be well prepared for bring forward infrastructure work, such as fast-tracking the development of employment and local transport infrastructure.
Service patterns for trains that run off the High Speed network must be assessed in light of the future rail franchise map in order to ensure a cohesive service for customers and integrated operation of the two networks.
The outcomes of this assessment will have a direct effect on the procurement of the rolling stock mix for HS2, divided between dedicated high speed rolling stock and that which can operate into the classic network.