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'HS2 delivery target was always going to be missed'

Ushma MistryKenilworth
News imageGetty Images A man in glasses and a dark suit sitting in front of a microphone. He is holding a booklet in his left handGetty Images
Sir John Armitt was also chairman of the 2012 Olympic Delivery Authority

The construction of HS2 was always going to miss its delivery target because the plan was rushed by ministers, the government's former infrastructure chief has said.

Sir John Armitt, who ended his tenure as the chair of the National Infrastructure Commission on 31 December, believes the haste in drawing up the project's blueprint hobbled it.

"They really hadn't thought this through before it started. They wanted it to be the fastest rail network in Europe - but did we really need it?" he said.

HS2 bosses insisted significant progress was made in 2025, but just before Christmas its CEO Mark Wild confirmed the government's revelation that opening the line by 2033 "cannot be achieved".

Wild's announcement came six months after Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander confirmed the delay, saying she promised to sort out the "appalling mess" and would "set targets that we can confidently deliver and that the public can trust".

"[HS2] was started fairly quickly before they had nailed down the real planning," Sir John added.

"So, it was always going to be delayed. It was never going to meet their initial deadline."

He said there were a number of other reasons why the 2033 deadline could not be met, including a number of changes of government, along with political whims.

But, he said the fundamental reason was the need for proper planning of the project ahead of any construction works starting, but this did not happen.

News imageA view of intersecting roads around the site of the HS2 construction around Kenilworth, Warwickshire. A series of barriers can be seen in the foreground and away in the distance, where a large pile of gravel can be seen.
Sir John Armitt, the government's former infrastructure chief, says ministers rushed through the plans for the rail network so they were "not nailed down"

"In the case of HS2, they had to get lots of local consent agreements, which added to the cost - this wasn't considered before the project was rolled out," he explained.

Malcolm Cooper, who has lived in Kenilworth for 56 years and in more recent years close to the HS2 route, said he was not surprised the 2033 deadline had been scrapped.

"It's been going on for long enough, he said. "Other countries managed to get their high-speed networks up much faster than we do.

"It's a disgrace, really. It's just a bottomless pit for money."

News imageMalcom Cooper is wearing a flat cap and coat and is standing in front of a Christmas tree in Kenilworth, to the right, and buildings to the left, one of which is a shop.
Kenilworth resident Malcolm Cooper thinks HS2 will be of little benefit to people like him, even when it is eventually completed

Cooper also thinks the project will bring no benefits to local people, who have had to endure years of disruption during the construction.

"It seems a terrible waste of money compared with the train services we have existing between Coventry and Euston are excellent," he said.

"I don't think it was necessary or worth it to shave 20 minutes off the journey from Birmingham. I think that was a waste of time."

In a statement in December, HS2 Ltd said it had been "finalising a new range of credible cost and schedule estimates".

Wild said he made a commitment to address "the failures of the past and get HS2 on track".

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