The boss of HS2 has said that construction of the high-speed rail line could be further delayed in an effort to curb costs.
Mark Thurston, the chief executive of HS2 Ltd, said soaring inflation had resulted in significant increases in the price of materials, raising the already ballooning cost of the much-delayed project to link London, the Midlands and the north of England.
“Whether that’s in timber, steel, aggregates for all the concrete we need to use to build the job, labour, all our energy costs, fuel,” he told the BBC.
Discussions are under way with the government over the timing and phasing of the project, which employs 30,000 workers, with the first stretch between London and Birmingham 40% complete.
“We’re looking at the timing of the project, the phasing of the project, we’re looking at where we can use our supply chain to secure a lot of those things that are costing us more through inflation,” he said.
The price tag of the project, which is the biggest of its kind in Europe, has increased from £33bn outlined in 2010 to at least £71bn.
Under “Project Silverlight”, ways are being examined to deal with cost pressures on the London-Birmingham stretch.
In January, the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, denied speculation that HS2 trains would not run from Old Oak Common, in west London, to Euston, in central London. He said he did not see “any conceivable circumstances” in which the planned Euston terminus would not go ahead.
It had been reported that the project could instead terminate permanently in the western suburbs of the capital to save money.
Thurston said HS2 was “protecting” the scope of the first phase.
He said a second initiative, called Project Blue Diamond, was “looking at the programme as a whole”.
The government has committed to roll out HS2 from London to Manchester. The high-speed rail (Crewe-Manchester) bill is working its way through parliament.
Last month, it was reported that ministers were planning to cut HS2 services and train speeds in an attempt to drive down costs.
The government is reportedly considering cutting the number of trains from 18 to 10 an hour and reducing the trains’ maximum speeds.
“The construction of HS2 is well under way and will bring transformational benefits to passengers and communities for generations to come,” a government spokesperson said. “The government remains fully committed to the integrated rail plan, including its commitment to deliver the high-speed line from Euston to Manchester.”
