“Without Euston we have an HS2 problem”

Sadiq Khan is launching a fresh call for the government to build a high-speed line in central London as fears grow over the line’s fate, reports Noah Vickers, local democracy reporter

Sadiq Khan has stressed the urgency of bringing High Speed ​​2 to Euston just hours before the government announces spending cuts, which could include scrapping the necessary tunnel link.

The mayor claimed he had no advance knowledge of the cuts to be detailed by chancellor Rachel Reeves in a speech on Monday afternoon.

In an interview with Times Radio this morning, Cabinet Minister Pat McFadden refused to rule out terminating the line at Old Oak Common in west London.

But speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Khan suggested he was optimistic the line would still be brought to Euston.

“My view is that a high-speed train running from the West Midlands to West London is not what was promised,” the mayor said, adding that he was not sure what the “attraction” of such a route would be for commuters. .

“What I know from my conversations with the government over the last three weeks is that they understand the importance of infrastructure for growth,” he said.

“I also understand the importance of London for growth. This, I hope, bodes well.”

When the last prime minister, Rishi Sunak, announced last year that the Euston section of the railway would be privately funded, Khan said it could “lead to the Euston terminus being scrapped by stealth”.

He said at the time that this “would be a devastating blow to passengers using the line and to the economy of London and the whole country”.

But on Monday the mayor adopted more measured language, saying: “I think if HS2 doesn’t eventually get to Euston, that’s a problem.”

He added: “It is a problem to do a cost-benefit analysis of HS2. It’s a question of increased capacity, it’s a question of, equally, speed. Because once you get to Old Oak Common, you have to hop on a tube – an overcrowded tube, perhaps, or the Elizabeth Line – to get where you want to go. So it gets down to the real fundamentals of the purpose of HS2.”

He stressed that any suggestion of HS2 cuts was at this stage “hypothetical” as Reeves had not yet given her speech.

Khan said he wanted the chancellor to be “transparent” but also not to give Londoners “false hope”.

In conversations with Transport Secretary Louise Haigh, the mayor said he argued that “not only do we need a long-term capital deal (for Transport for London), but we think Euston is in a situation where families and -they lost their houses”. we’ve been demolished – businesses have lost their buildings – they’ve been demolished – and at present it seems to be just a blight.”

He asked, “What is the benefit of this disease? That is why there must be an answer to this question – what is the future of Euston?

“My point of view? The future of Euston is HS2 coming into that station, the public realm being improved, the bus station being improved, (and) that community seeing the benefits.

“But clearly that can only happen if the government can afford to do it and also there is a good partnership between us and them. I think there is – between the council, between us, between business and government. The key is to find out how good or bad public finances are.”

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