The Leader of Cheshire East Council has warmly welcomed Government proposals to help secure the route of the new high-speed rail HS2 via Crewe.
It follows the announcement last week that that Crewe should be the site of a North West superhub station for the HS2 high-speed rail network.
The Government today (November 4) launched a consultation on safeguarding the key corridor of land needed for the Phase Two of HS2 between Fradley and Crewe.
Council Leader Michael Jones said the move was great news and will help ensure that delivery of HS2 via Crewe can take place apace – without extra costs and delays over land acquisition or conflicting development.
Councillor Jones said: “This is further great news not just for Crewe and for Cheshire East but also Stoke and North Staffordshire and beyond.
“It shows the Government’s preference for delivering HS2 via Crewe to create a real economic powerhouse in the North West of England. The benefits for the whole region will be massive.
“The Crewe HS2 Superhub will produce 64,000 jobs and boost the North West’s economic output by around £3.5 billion a year. It will also act as a major gateway for the region, energising the northern powerhouse.
“This announcement today helps ensure that this tremendous vision will become a reality sooner and without additional costs.
“But it must be stressed that this was not just about Crewe and the Borough of Cheshire East but the wider region including Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire.
“I look forward to meeting with and involving Stoke and Staffordshire councils and the Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce to develop and shape further plans to enable the people of Staffordshire to benefit from this exciting project.
“Cheshire East Council is already working on a diverse programme of local and strategic infrastructure improvements to create a High Growth City around Crewe but the Superhub will have a truly transformational effect on the town and whole region.
“There are more than 800 acres of prime development land near to the Superhub station. We believe HS2 will unlock development sites for businesses and homes throughout Cheshire, North Staffordshire, North Wales and beyond.”
Residents on the Fradley to Crewe section of the HS2 Phase Two route are now being consulted on plans to protect the land from conflicting development.
The safeguarding consultation will take place over nine weeks and pave the way for the protection of this corridor of land and ensure new development in the area does not affect the ability to build and operate HS2 in the future.
Today’s news follows Cheshire East Council welcoming an HS2 Ltd announcement last week recommending that Crewe should be the site of a North West hub station for the HS2 high-speed rail network.
HS2 chairman Sir David Higgins said he would be advising the Government that the new station should be built and operational by 2027, five years earlier than first expected.
Sir David said journey times between Crewe and London would be cut to just 55 minutes, 40 minutes quicker than the fastest current journey. Within one hour from London by rail, it would link a vast hinterland to the high-speed network, including Stoke-on-Trent, Warrington, Liverpool and North Wales.
More information about today’s announcement can be found online after HS2 Ltd today published their consultation on the safeguarding of the HS2 route to Crewe. Visit:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/safeguarding-consultation-on-hs2-route-to-crewe-launched
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