HS2 trains will run slower than originally planned, in an effort to keep down rising construction costs.
The Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander told MPs on Tuesday that the new maximum speed of HS2 services will be 320km/h, down from the intended 360km/h (224mph).
Alexander also confirmed the trains would no longer be operational by the intended date of 2033, saying we could instead see the first trains on tracks as late as 2039, with trains not running all the way to Euston until as late as 2043.
The line was originally meant to open in 2026, and was initially announced in 2012 by a Conservative government, having been consulted on by Gordon Brown’s Labour government in 2009.
Since being announced, the project has risen from an initial £32.7 billion in 2011 prices to £66.6 billion for just the London to Birmingham route, having at one point topped an estimated £100 billion when stretching further north to Manchester.
Speaking on Tuesday, Heidi Alexander said the new estimated cost for the project sat between £87.7 billion to £102.7 billion.
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