HS2 parts other than London-Birmingham route officially cancelled

The UK’s prime minister, Rishi Sunak, announced on the 4^th of October that the second phase of the High Speed 2 (HS2) project is officially cancelled.

This decision comes months after the British government announced delays to phase 2, as well as another route to Leeds being cancelled in 2021.

Furthermore, it was noted by the prime minister that the project’s cost has skyrocketed to more than £100 billion, almost double what was estimated in 2015 and triple than in 2010, meaning that it is no longer deemed feasible.

It was stated in the announcement that axing phase 2 would free up £36 billion, which will be used in several other transportation projects.

However, it was assured that the London to Birmingham route would continue as planned and run all the way to Euston.

Finally, it is worth mentioning that, according to the Department of Transport, safeguarding of the land previously acquired for the project’s 2a phase from Birmingham to Crewe will be lifted within weeks, meaning that it will be sold.