The high speed railway line which promised big things for Manchester will no longer be coming to the North of England. Political reporter Joseph Timan looks at what the scheme was supposed to achieve, who supported it and what happens next
HS2 has been in the news an awful lot lately. Speaking at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester last week, Rishi Sunak said he would 'end this long-running saga' by cancelling the rest of the high-speed railway line which means it will no longer reach the city.
It comes after the government was accused of killing any hope of the HS2 ever coming to the North by lifting protections on land needed to build the new line from other conflicting developments. Land acquired for the scheme is now expected to be sold off. What was the point of HS2 in Manchester? Labour established HS2 Ltd in January 2009 to examine the case for a new high-speed rail line in the UK. The following year, under the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition government, plans for a line from London to Birmingham, then Manchester and Leeds, were revealed.
HS2 was supposed to take around an hour off the journey between Manchester Piccadilly and London Euston, from two hours and 20 minutes to one hour and 11 minutes. HS2 trains would have also reached Birmingham in 41 minutes, more than halving the trip by train. "This represents one of the biggest development opportunities in the UK," the website says. "It has potential to make significant impact on the national economy, spurred on by the arrival of HS2."
The major transport investment was seen as a chance to enhance Greater Manchester's standing in the world and described as a once-in-a-generation opportunity. There has also historically been cross-party support in Parliament for the infrastructure project. Land all along the route from Birmingham would have been compulsory purchased - and even for those living in properties which they were not forced to sell, many people did not want a high-speed railway line running right next to their homes, farms and businesses.
Some residents in Wigan were also opposed to the part of the line which was set to run through their backyard. However, the Golborne spur was scrapped last year when the government decided the 13-mile stretch would be removed from the proposal. According to the government, the costs of Phase 1 - from London to the West Midlands - were estimated to be £20.5bn in 2012. However, this figure has steadily increased over the years and, last week, the Department for Transport said it had risen to £54bn.
The line to Manchester was not expected to be in operation until as late as 2041. This is 18 years away and eight years behind schedule. HS2 Ltd figures show £562m has been spent on land and property for the new line north of Birmingham. Business leaders from across the country have argued that the business case for building HS2 was about uniting the North and South with a high speed railway.
Under a process known as safeguarding, land on the HS2 routes – including extensions to Crewe, Manchester and the East Midlands – was protected to stop conflicting developments taking place. But in the coming weeks, this protection will start to be formally lifted.
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