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Construction of HS2 at Euston suspended after funding for link thrown into doubt
The government is “committing the necessary funding” to begin work on tunneling to bring HS2 to London Euston station, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced.
Ms Reeves said in her budget speech that this would encourage private investment in the region.
In October last year, then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the extension of the high-speed rail project from Old Oak Common, in the west London suburbs, to Euston, near the center of the capital , depended on private investment.
The aim was to save £6.5 billion of taxpayers' money.
Major construction work on HS2 at a site next to the existing Euston station has been halted since last March due to doubts over funding.
Ms Reeves said: “We are committing the necessary funding to begin work on tunneling to London Euston Station.
“This will catalyze private investment in the region, creating jobs and growth.”
The Commons Public Accounts Committee published a report in February saying it was “very skeptical” about the Department for Transport's ability to attract private investment “at the scale and speed required” to make the extension of the HS2 to Euston “a success”.
New plan calls for HS2 to be a high-speed link between Birmingham and London
What routes will HS2 take?
HS2 was initially intended to connect London with Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds.
The new project plans for this to be a high-speed link between Birmingham and London, with much work having already been carried out on this section.
What works are required in Euston?
The section of the HS2 railway between Parkway and Hampstead Road in Camden is called Euston Approaches and is designed to connect the line to Euston station. It is currently a construction site.
Many of the larger excavations needed to build the Euston Approaches tunnels have been suspended.
This includes suspending construction of a concrete box that was supposed to be a covered section along the railway line where trains would enter and exit the tunnels.
Other works include tunneling and creating a wider and deeper railway called Euston Throat, which would make way for HS2.
