West Midlands and Manchester Mayors team up in attempt to revive HS2 by 'inviting' private funding
HS2's northern leg could yet live despite the Government scrapping the Birmingham-to-Manchester line, as the region's mayor confirmed he hopes to "invite the private sector" to help fund the project.
West Midlands Mayor Andy Street, who was furious Prime Minister Rishi Sunak cancelled the multi-billion pound project at the Conservative Party's Autumn conference, is trying to raise private finance to fund the railway.
Mr Street has been working with his Labour counterpart in Greater Manchester, Mayor Andy Burnham, to revive HS2's original destination in the North.
The two mayors are believed to be preparing for talks with the Government in Whitehall about their proposals to use private investment instead of taxpayers' cash.
Mr Street told the Express & Star today: “The mayors of the two regions are leading this but, to be clear, with government support. By inviting the private sector in to play the maximum possible role, it can be significantly less costly for the public exchequer.”
The West Midlands Mayor confirmed he brought together private train companies, experts and construction companies for discussions about how to learn from similar projects across the world.
There are several options for replacing the axed northern leg, from continuing the same route to upgrading the West Coast Mainline, which links Birmingham and Manchester and is already projected to be over capacity.
However, due to the Government removing the "safeguarding" of land already purchased for HS2, Mr Street and Burnham need to act before designated land is sold.
The London-to-Birmingham leg of HS2 is well underway but has seen costs rocket to £57 billion while the opening date has been pushed back into the 2030s, years behind schedule.
