There is “no point” building HS2 unless it reaches London Euston.
That was the message from HS2 Ltd CEO Mark Thurston at Rail Live 2023, in response to speculation that the line’s southern terminus could be scrapped amid rampant cost rises.
Construction of the high-speed station was paused by government earlier this year, after the forecast cost ballooned from beyond its £2.6 billion budget to almost £5bn.
This was despite the station having already been redesigned since 2020, with fewer platforms than originally planned.
The ‘rephasing’ of construction is expected to delay the opening of Euston until 2041-43. Trains will instead temporarily terminate at
Old Oak Common in west London when the rest of HS2 Phase 1 opens to Birmingham Curzon Street between 2029-33.
Read this article in full in RAIL issue 987 here
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simhedges - 29/07/2023 10:57
Just get on a build the damn thing. The longer the delay, the greater the cost, the lower the benefit.
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