Some are not spoken of openly. Have you heard of the new fast train line that is being built? The HS2. London Euston will be connected 20 mins faster to Birmingham. Some people are wondering why we are spending so much money to arrive 20 minutes earlier. And we are spending a lot.
Costs:
- July 2017 – Initial work contracts: £6.1 bn
- December 2017 – Initial work contracts 50% higher: £9 bn
- March 2019 – Recognised the budget can’t be met.
- Jan 2020 – £7.4 bn currently spent on phase 1 initial work contracts.
Issues
The new ground needed more preparation than expected, being an extra cost on money and time.
The ground at Euston – £1bn more to prepare due to asbestos and archaeological sites being found and needing to be dug.
Plans being changed
- Changes to plans: An extra £1bn.
- An extra bridge – this will add 1 more year to the project.
- Moving gas and electricity lines:
- 2015 – costed at £480m
- 2019 – costed at £970m
HS2 Ltd Analysis of Undertaking and assurances about the effects of construction:
- Initially set at – £245m
- Now –(may run to) £1.2bn
- Phase 2a:
- To Crewe – £6.5bn Aim: Complete by 2031.
- Phase 2b:
- To Manchester and Leeds – £41bn
References are drawn from the Guardian Friday 24th January 2020
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jan/24/hs2-high-speed-rail-europe-infrastructure-project