New contract for one of Britain’s least reliable train operators – and beleaguered Avanti September 19, 2023 One of Britain’s least reliable train operators has been handed a long-term contract renewal. The Department for Transport (DfT) announced that CrossCountry, whose network stretches across large parts of the country, will continue to run services. It also renewed Avanti West Coast’s contract. Office of Rail and Road (ORR) figures show the equivalent of 6.8 [...]
Another HS2 mess: Downing Street refuses to guarantee it will run to Manchester September 14, 2023 Downing Street has refused to guarantee the HS2 railway line will run to Manchester as planned.
HS2 may never open at Euston. But it might kill Drummond Street’s Indian restaurants anyway. September 2, 2023 Tehreem Riaz, 53, has lived on London’s Drummond Street almost her entire life. Known for its vibrant atmosphere and Indian cuisine, the area is home to some of the capitals’ oldest South Asian restaurants and is the birthplace of household brand Patak’s Pickles and the national Indian sweet shop, Ambala Sweets. Riaz and her parents, [...]
HS2 status update: Now they’re burying the diggers August 10, 2023 Engineers are being forced to bury diggers at Old Oak Common in case ministers give the go-ahead for project's Euston leg
HS2 chief executive quits as soaring costs and delays continue to mount July 12, 2023 HS2 Ltd’s longest serving chief executive has announced his resignation from the project amid ongoing criticism over soaring costs and delay. 56-year old Mark Thurston – who was paid a salary of £617,300 in 2021/22 – will depart at the end of September after six and a half years at the helm. In a statement [...]
Is HS2 a ‘rail to nowhere’? MPs quiz Harper on viability of delayed £1.2bn Euston project April 19, 2023 In a committee hearing this morning, transport secretary Mark Harper admitted that HS2’s Euston developments were “significantly” greater than the initial budget allocated. His comments followed confirmation that the £1.2bn tunnel from Old Oak Common would be paused until 2024. Harper faced an array of strong questions relating to Euston’s Old Oak Common section of [...]
HS2’s £1.2bn London Euston project pause confirmed, but length of delay unclear April 18, 2023 A delay on constructing a 7.2km HS2 tunnel to Euston until 2024 has been confirmed, with the project’s final shape remaining unclear. Both the DfT and HS2 did not disclose how long the delay would be for, when approached by City AM. The government has delayed the development between Euston and Old Oak Common due [...]
Is HS2 holding up the UK’s construction industry? Output up but housebuilding continues to fall April 6, 2023 Civil engineering rose at its highest level since 2009 in March, according to a leading global index which measures the monthly construction output of the UK economy. At 50.7 in March, the headline seasonally adjusted S&P Global /CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) – which measures month-on-month changes in total industry activity – was [...]
No light at end of the tunnel: HS2 delay leading to higher costs as London Euston link nearing £5bn March 27, 2023 Delays linking up HS2 and Euston will mean extra costs and potentially even higher spending, the National Audit Office has warned ministers. A near 50-page report, looking specifically at the Euston element of the much delayed high-speed line, concluded that a “reset” in 2020 had “not succeeded”. It comes after Transport Secretary was criticised earlier [...]
Elizabeth Line usage soars by 41 per cent as London commuters get around tube and rail strikes March 17, 2023 One in six journeys on Britain’s transport network have been made on the new Elizabeth line, with 62m taken on London’s newest railway between October and December 2022. Out of almost 370m rail passenger journeys across the UK, Crossrail accounted for 41 per cent, according to new figures released by the Office for Rail and [...]