HS2

HS2 works may have compounded flooding in some areas, according to the construction commissioner scrutinising the project.  In his latest report, covering the second quarter of 2024, independent commissioner for HS2 Sir Mark Worthington said he had heard “a number of reports of localised flooding impacting upon residents and communities”. …

Ministers are taking greater oversight of HS2 in a bid to tackle “dire” project delivery, the transport secretary has announced. Regular meetings among top ministers was among a raft of measures promised by Louise Haigh yesterday (20 October), as she warned the cost of the rail mega-project has risen uncontrollably.…

The likelihood of HS2 finishing at Euston is looking “increasingly positive”, London mayor Sadiq Khan has said. Khan gave an upbeat reading on his hopes for the endangered station project as he set out his plans to attract transport investment last night (2 October) at the London Transport Museum’s annual…

Unions have agreed access to HS2 London tunnel sites, ending a five-year battle. SCS, the joint venture (JV) between Skanska, Costain and Strabag, has signed an agreement with unions Unite and GMB allowing union officials to visit workers based at Euston on site. Union members will be able to discuss…

Contractors working for HS2 should give the public more notice about future construction works, the commissioner for the mega rail project has said.  Mark Worthington, independent construction commissioner for HS2, said contractors “are sometimes too cautious about announcements, preferring to make them only when all elements [of a programme] have…

The government has written off more than £2bn on the cancelled leg of HS2, accounts reveal. In its annual report, HS2 Ltd said it lost £2.2bn on the megaproject’s northern leg in the year ending 31 March, £1bn of which it attributed to lost economic benefit following former prime minister…

Rachel Reeves is set to halt some of the largest government projects in a bid to balance the books, including the New Hospital Programme and Lower Thames Crossing. The chancellor (pictured) is expected to pause or cancel some of the government’s most troubled capital commitments in a speech this afternoon,…

Closing HS2’s cancelled second phase will cost £100m and take three years despite no major construction work ever taking place, a watchdog has said. Works already started are likely to take until summer 2027 to reverse, a report by the National Audit Office (NAO) concluded. More than 1,000 boreholes have…

An engineering firm has been fined after a worker suffered a fractured skull and multiple other injuries while working at an HS2 site in Hertfordshire. The mechanical engineer, employed by EMC Elite Engineering Services, was repairing a conveyor at the site on Chalfont Lane, West Hyde, when he fell 11…

Costs have risen on the main civils works of HS2 in the south of England. Skanska revealed in a stock market statement on Friday that it is set to receive an extra £50m for its role on the southern section of the megaproject after agreeing changes to its scope of…