HS2 northern leg scrapped, leaving Birmingham the end of the line

The government has scrapped the northern leg of HS2, meaning the high-speed railway will run only between London and Birmingham.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced on 4 October, in his speech to the Conservative Party conference in Manchester, that the second phase of the line, from the Birmingham area to Manchester, would not go ahead.

What remains

The decision leaves a new high-speed line from London to Handsacre, north-east of Birmingham near Lichfield, where it will join the existing West Coast Main Line, with a branch into the centre of Birmingham at Curzon Street. Trains heading further north will continue on the existing, slower railway.

The eastern branch to Leeds had already been cut back in 2021. The latest decision means HS2 will no longer reach any of the major cities of the north of England on its own track.

In London, the government said the new Euston terminus would be scaled back and would depend on private sector funding.

Network North

The Prime Minister said the £36 billion saved by not building the northern leg would be spent instead on roads, buses and railways across the country, under a new programme called Network North. He argued that the cost of HS2 had spiralled and that the money would do more good spent on other transport projects.

What it means for Birmingham

For Birmingham, the core of the project is unaffected. Work is well under way on Curzon Street station in Eastside, which will be the city centre terminus, and on the Interchange station near the NEC and the airport. The line between London and Birmingham has been under construction for several years.

But the decision is a blow to hopes that Birmingham would sit at the heart of a national high-speed network, with fast links to Manchester and the north as well as to London. Business leaders in the city have long argued that faster connections northwards would bring more investment and jobs.

The decision also raises questions about capacity on the existing West Coast Main Line north of Birmingham, which HS2 was meant to relieve.

A long and troubled project

HS2 was first proposed in 2009 and approved as a Y-shaped network, with branches from Birmingham to Manchester and Leeds. The first phase, from London to Birmingham, was authorised by Parliament in 2017, and the section as far as Crewe in 2021.

Costs have risen sharply over the years, and the project has faced strong opposition from some communities along the route and from environmental campaigners. Its supporters say it would add much-needed capacity to the rail network and help rebalance the economy.

Reaction

The announcement has been criticised by many political and business leaders in the Midlands and the north, including the region's mayor, Andy Street, who had campaigned hard for the line to be completed. Others welcomed the promise of spending on local transport.

For now, Birmingham will remain the end of the line.