Northern leg of HS2 to Manchester scrapped over soaring costs | UK News
The northern leg of the HS2 line is set to be scrapped, it has been reported.
Rumours have been circling for weeks that the high-speed rail line was going to be axed by the Prime Minister due to soaring costs.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt previously suggested the scheme is ‘out of control’, and former transport secretary Grant Shapps said the government couldn’t write an ‘open-ended cheque’ if costs kept going up.
It is understood the Department of Transport (DfT) has worked up a package of alternative projects – rail, bus and road schemes – which could be funded from money saved by scrapping the Manchester to Birmingham leg of the project.
Plans to scrap HS2 has in the past drawn criticism from former prime ministers David Cameron and Boris Johnson, mayors of London and Greater Manchester, Sadiq Khan and Andy Burnham, and some business leaders.
A budget of £55.7 billion for the whole of HS2 was set in 2015, but some reports suggest costs have now surpassed £100 billion, having been driven up by recent inflation rises.
A budget of £55.7 billion for the whole of HS2 was set in 2015, but some reports suggest costs have now surpassed £100 billion, having been driven up by recent inflation rises.
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