What Leeds sayspublished at 13:41 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Tom Ingall
Journalist, BBC Look North
I've spoken to Leeds City Council and here's their thoughts on today's announcements.
Summary
Updates on Thursday 7 July 2016
HS2 route changes revealed
What Leeds sayspublished at 13:41 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Possible HS2 rail stop for Chesterfield welcomedpublished at 13:26 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Revised plans for the HS2 rail link which could mean two high-speed trains an hour stopping in Chesterfield have been welcomed by town leaders.
Image source, HS2Chesterfield Borough Council leader Councillor John Burrows says the recommendation by HS2 chairman Sir David Higgins to change the original route to include a link via the Midland Mainline that could stop in Chesterfield is great news for the town’s economic future.
Peter Swallow, chair of Destination Chesterfield, the town’s marketing campaign, has also welcomed the news as it would deliver 79-minute train journeys to London and shorter journey times to Leeds and other towns and cities in the north and Midlands.
HS2: Anguish of residents with houses on new route through Mexboroughpublished at 13:06 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
The people behind the HS2 railway line, say they've changed their minds about where in South Yorkshire it should be.
It will now go through a housing estate in Mexborough which may be knocked down even though it hasn't yet been completed. Amy who lives there called BBC Radio Sheffield today:
HS2: Doncaster Mayor Ros Jones' shock at new HS2 routepublished at 12:53 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Following today’s surprise HS2 announcement, Mayor of Doncaster Ros Jones has vowed to support local people affected by the new route proposals and fight to ensure that Doncaster does not lose out.
Image source, Ros JonesQuote MessageI support the national HS2 project and recognise its importance to our country. However, I am shocked and surprised by these significant last minute changes. They have never been suggested during the last four years so it is extremely disappointing that local people and our communities are being put in this position at the eleventh hour. I understand the financial challenges facing the project, but saving money must not be achieved at the expense of people living in Doncaster, South Yorkshire and the wider Sheffield City Region.
Doncaster Mayor Ros Jones
HS2: Cost 'not the reason for change'published at 12:45 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
The man who has changed the route of HS2 through South Yorkshire, Sir David Higgings the Executive Chairman of the project insists that the saving of £1bn was not the reason for alteration.
Media caption, The proposed changes will save money - but that's not the only reason to make them
HS2: What we know so farpublished at 12:30 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Kate Linderholm
BBC Local Live, SheffieldPlans have been unveiled today to re-route the HS2 rail line through Yorkshire.
Image source, HS2Key changes:
- The path will now head between Doncaster and Rotherham rather than around Meadowhall
- The new route will save £1bn and and result in journey times to London from Sheffield of 79 minutes
- The latest proposals would move the line through a brand new housing estate in Mexborough which would have to be demolished
HS2: Dismay from residents in Mexborough on estate due to be bulldozedpublished at 12:26 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Kevin Larkin
Doncaster Reporter, BBC Radio SheffieldThe latest proposals would move the line for HS2 through a brand new housing estate which would have to be demolished.
Chelsea Turner lives on the Shimmer estate in Mexborough - she can't understand the decision
Media caption, Chelsea Turner from the Shimmer estate in Mexborough
HS2: Statement from developer behind Mexborough's Shimmer estatepublished at 12:18 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
It was only yesterday that the Strata team met with advisors from the Department of Transport and representatives for HS2 and discovered the housing estate they are still constructing in Mexborough may be bulldozed to make way for the new HS2 route.
Quote MessageWe are shocked by this news. We have been working on site at Shimmer for a number of years and are immensely proud of the homes that we have built and the community which we have helped to create. As you can imagine, we are still trying to digest this information and there are still a number of questions that we are waiting to be answered. However, we are working closely with representatives to understand proposals so that we can be clear on what this may mean for our existing and future home owners."
Andrew Weaver, Strata Chief Executive
HS2: Call for quick determination by government for new routepublished at 12:11 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
The Executive Chairman of HS2, Sir David Higgins, explains why high speed rail has changed course in South Yorkshire:
HS2: Building work continues on doomed housing estate in Mexboroughpublished at 11:59 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Kevin Larkin
Doncaster Reporter, BBC Radio SheffieldIt's still not finished being built but today it was announced the Shimmer housing estate at Mexborough will be demolished to make way for the new HS2 route through South Yorkshire.
This Twitter post cannot be displayed in your browser. Please enable Javascript or try a different browser.View original content on TwitterThe BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.Skip twitter postThe BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.Allow Twitter content?
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter’s cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.
End of twitter postHS2: Mixed views from people in Mexboroughpublished at 11:44 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
The proposal to site an HS2 station somewhere near Thurnscoe has been welcomed by Danny Ward from the Mexborough business forum:
Quote MessageSurely it's going to bring more people so hopefully that's positive."
But residents on the Shimmer estate at Mexborough which will be knocked down were shocked to hear the plans this morning:
This Twitter post cannot be displayed in your browser. Please enable Javascript or try a different browser.View original content on TwitterThe BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.Skip twitter postThe BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.Allow Twitter content?
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter’s cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.
End of twitter postHS2: South Yorkshire MPs demand meeting with Transport Secretary over new planspublished at 11:34 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
South Yorkshire MPs are demanding a meeting with the Transport Secretary Patrick Mcloughlin after it was revealed that a planned HS2 stop at Meadowhall has been dropped.
Image source, GoogleThe high speed line will now run through South Yorkshire, veering off onto existing track to stop in Sheffield city centre.
The initial proposal for an HS2 stop at Meadowhall has now been shelved, partly to reduce costs.
In response to the changes Wentworth and Dearne MP John Healey and Doncaster North MP Ed Miliband have joined with other MPs in the region to demand an explanation and make the case for another South Yorkshire station on the HS2 line.
Quote MessageBig transport funding has heavily favoured London for years, so I’ve been ready to back any economic investment that shifts the balance more to the north. But I am dismayed to see these surprise new plans to drop Meadowhall as South Yorkshire’s HS2 stop. The number one purpose of this change is clearly to cut costs, and I fear the so-called ‘spur line’ into Sheffield is simply a sop to the city. We can’t have the new High Speed line to Leeds running right through South Yorkshire but not stopping in South Yorkshire."
MP John Healey
HS2: New route through South Yorkshire will cut costspublished at 11:24 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Tom Ingall
Journalist, BBC Look NorthIt starts with a map but ends with numbers.
Image source, HS2The new report will come as a shock to some people.
Previously they had been nowhere near the route of HS2 but now they are underneath a proposal for a line to the east of Rotherham.
HS2 admits it will have an impact on housing developments. However, they also say this route will be £1bn cheaper and make journeys to the north faster.
Image source, HS2The Secretary of State for Transport makes the final decision on this, but it’s looking more likely that Sheffield will get its campaigned for city centre station and there could be a parkway station in the Dearne Valley too.
HS2: How we got herepublished at 11:10 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Kate Linderholm
BBC Local Live, SheffieldIn January 2012 the Secretary of State for Transport announced that HS2 would go ahead. It would comprise a "Y-shaped" network with stations at London, Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield and the East Midlands conveying up to 26,000 people each hour at speeds of up to 400 kilometres per hour (250 mph).
The government argued that Britain's rail network was reaching capacity, and infrastructure owner Network Rail said the southern section of the West Coast Main Line - currently the quickest rail route between London and Birmingham - will be "effectively full" by 2024.
But from the outset there were concerns about the cost.
Image source, HS2HS2 - the proposed high-speed rail link - was supposed to help bridge the North-South divide.
But the debate surrounding the controversial project opened up a divide between councils in the north, which welcomed the scheme, and those further south which did not.
Image source, GooglePlans to site the station for HS2 at Meadowhall divided Sheffield's politicians.
Former Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat MP for Sheffield Hallam, said building a station outside the city centre was the right option.
But Paul Blomfield, the Labour MP for Sheffield Central, said the station should be built in the city centre.
Image source, HS2Last year a key report cast doubt on the economic case for HS2.
The Lords report echoed a similar report published by the Commons Public Accounts Committee in January.
The MPs said that ministers lacked a "clear strategic plan for the rail network" and were "sceptical" about whether HS2 would deliver value for money.
Image source, Getty ImagesLast week it started to emerge that the route was about to be changed.
Today that was confirmed by HS2.
Image source, HS2HS2: What we know so farpublished at 10:48 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
There's been a change of plan about the HS2 railway line with a whole new route for South Yorkshire
Image source, HS2Key facts on the new route:
- Meadowhall station scrapped
- Now going further east through Dearne Valley
- Some HS2 trains will divert off new track to Chesterfield and Sheffield stations
- New route saves £1bn if supported by Department for Transport
- Campaigners opposed to the project are claiming there will be more cuts to come
- The Shimmer estate in Mexborough could be bulldozed to create the new route
- The first trains will not run till 2033 at the earliest
HS2: Letters sent to residents on doomed estatepublished at 10:34 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Kat Cowan
Reporter, BBC Radio SheffieldPeople in Mexborough have been waking up to letters from HS2 this morning. The proposed new route will mean houses on the Shimmer estate could be knocked down.
This is another letter received by residents on the Shimmer estate today.
HS2: Your views on the new route through South Yorkshirepublished at 10:23 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
The proposal to change of route for HS2 through South Yorkshire is dividing opinion with many people commenting on BBC Radio Sheffield's Facebook page firmly against the plans.
Image source, HS2Quote MessageNo northern powerhouse then? Just a nice ride to Leeds through the countryside, missing out South Yorkshire all together. Morons!"
Bruce Sachs
Quote MessageOk there's a £1bn saving - hardly sizeable in the grand scale of the project, but where's the benefit of a line into the heart of Sheffield then being stuck in traffic getting to the surrounding areas? I don't mean Barnsley or Rotherham or even Doncaster (which will undoubtedly suffer) but the industrial areas of Sheffield. Oh sorry my bad, this is just to cater for IT-based industry in the financial powerhouse district of the dilapidated city centre... right - got it now!"
Lee Marson
Quote MessageHS2 should be scrapped its not going to be worth the cost."
Pat Shaw
Quote MessageI will be nearly dead by the time it's ready so it means nothing to me."
Neil Meldrum
HS2: Housebuilder shocked by proposed demolition of Mexborough Estatepublished at 10:08 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Strata Homes has sent a letter to resisents on the Shimmer estate saying it had no idea until yesterday afternoon about the proposed plans to change the HS2 route to go through Mexborough and bulldoze the homes it is still building in the area.
New housing estate in Mexborough to be bulldozed for new HS2 routepublished at 09:56 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
Tom Ingall
Journalist, BBC Look NorthPeople in South Yorkshire have been getting letters this morning saying thier homes are going to be knocked down because there's a railway line coming.
It's not even finished being built but the Shimmer housing estate between Mexborough and Conisbrough is going to be knocked down to make way for the changed route for the HS2 train line between London and Leeds.
It was going to take a path around Meadowhall between Sheffield and Rotherham. Now it will be further east between Rotherham and Doncaster, cutting through the Dearne Valley.
HMP Lindholme: Kilo of drugs seized at prison in monthpublished at 09:45 British Summer Time 7 July 2016
A kilo of drugs previously known as "legal highs" and dozens of mobile phones have been seized at a Doncaster prison in a single month.
Image source, Bill Henderson GeographHM Inspectorate of Prisons said the influx of drugs at HMP Lindholme was "destabilising" the establishment.
The Category C prison holds just over 1,000 adult male inmates.
Prison inspectors said they were told "horrific" stories concerning the possible effects of new psychoactive substances (NPS).