High Speed 2

High Speed 2
High Speed 2
	The planned extent of HS2 as of October 2023
Overview
Status	Under construction
Locale	Greater London; South East England; West Midlands;
Termini	London Euston; Birmingham Curzon Street;
Connecting lines	West Coast Main Line
Stations	4
Website	www.hs2.org.uk
Service
Type	High-speed railway
System	National Rail
History
Commenced	2017
Planned opening	Unknown
Technical
Line length	230 km (140 mi)
Number of tracks	Double track
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Loading gauge	UIC GC
Electrification	25 kV 50 Hz AC overhead line
Operating speed	360 km/h (225 mph) maximum, 330 km/h (205 mph) routinely
Schematic map
Schematic map
As of October 2023
	pedestrian walkway to
	St Pancras International
	interchange with National Rail at all stations
Original plan, pre-2021
	Northern Powerhouse Rail
	to East Coast Main Line
	to York & Newcastle
	West Coast Main Line
	to Liverpool, Glasgow & Edinburgh
	Phase 1
	Phase 2
	pedestrian walkway to
	St Pancras International
	interchange with National Rail at all stations

High Speed 2 (HS2) is a high-speed railway which has been under construction in England since 2019. The line's planned route is between Handsacre – in southern Staffordshire – and London, with a branch to Birmingham. HS2 is to be Britain's second purpose-built high-speed railway (after High Speed 1, the London-to-Channel Tunnel link). London and Birmingham are to be served directly by new high-speed track. Services to Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester are to use a mix of new high-speed track and the existing West Coast Main Line. The majority of the project was planned to be completed by 2033; however, in 2025, the completion date was announced to be further delayed by transport secretary Heidi Alexander.

The new track is planned between London Euston and Handsacre, near Lichfield in southern Staffordshire, where a junction connects HS2 to the north-south West Coast Main Line. New stations are planned for Old Oak Common in northwest London, Birmingham Interchange near Solihull, and Birmingham city centre. The trains are being designed to reach a maximum speed of 360 km/h (220 mph) when operating on HS2 track, dropping to 200 km/h (125 mph) on conventional track.

The length of the planned new track has been reduced substantially since the first announcement in 2013. The scheme was originally to split into eastern and western branches north of Birmingham Interchange. The eastern branch would have connected to the Midland Main Line at Clay Cross in Derbyshire and the East Coast Main Line south of York, with a branch to a terminus in Leeds. The western branch would have had connections to the West Coast Main Line at Crewe and south of Wigan, branching to a terminus in Manchester. Between November 2021 and October 2023 the project was progressively cut until only the London to Handsacre and Birmingham section remained.

The project has both supporters and opponents. Supporters believe that the additional capacity provided will accommodate passenger numbers rising to pre-COVID-19 levels while driving a further modal shift to rail. Opponents believe that the project is neither environmentally nor financially sustainable.