Click here to listen to the latest rail news on Thursday, 11th January 2024. Sponsored by Petards Rail
InTheNews Sponsored by Petards Rail: The latest rail news on Thursday, 11th January 2024
The London to Birmingham stretch of the HS2 railway could cost more than £65 billion in current prices, the boss of the company building it has said.
An article on the BBC website says Sir Jonathan Thompson said a rise in the cost of materials such as concrete and steel over the past few years have added £8bn to £10bn.
In October the government cancelled the sections between the West Midlands, Manchester, and the East Midlands.
Now HS2 Ltd and the government disagree on the cost of building the rest.
Andy Burnham has joined forces with the West Midlands mayor and a group of private companies to come up with an alternative plan for HS2.
An article on the Manchester Evening News website says the two mayors have convened a private sector group in a bid to boost transport links between Birmingham and Manchester.
It comes after West Midlands mayor Andy Street secured a commitment from Rishi Sunak to consider alternative proposals as the Prime Minster cancelled the Northern section of the high-speed railway line.
A new rail service between Edinburgh and London will link the two capitals in just four hours, and skip a number of stations along the way.
An article on Edinburgh Live says LNER has said their long-awaited speedy service will launch in December, four years after it was due to begin. The service will run once an hour up and down the 400-mile line, reports the Mirror.
Set to take just four hours and five minutes, the journey would be quicker than flying – which is 13 times more polluting according to a recent study. The service will also only stop in York and Newcastle.
Siemens Mobility has secured a £47 million contract with HS2 to provide a fully integrated station information management system across all HS2 stations, Curzon Street, Interchange, Old Oak Common and Euston.
Siemens Mobility’s Digital Station Manager technology, which is already in use for the millions of people travelling every day on London’s Elizabeth line, will touch every stage of passengers’ journeys through stations.
Photo credit: Siemens Mobility
