HS2 plans ‘sprint-sale’ of assets near stations

Spare land near the planned high-speed rail link between London and Birmingham will be sold off early to help meet rising building costs for the scheme, the government says.

Budget papers released by the treasury yesterday set out how the government intends to ramp up disposals across its £190bn property estate, with plans to raise up to £1bn through sales of public assets by 2030.

In a budget summary released along with Rachel Reeves’ autumn statement yesterday, the government confirmed that HS2 was now undertaking a “sprint project” aimed at identifying land near stations which could be sold off early.

The move is set to form part on an ongoing reset programme for the project, aimed at breaking a cycle of cost increases and delays which have led to costs soaring past the project’s initial £37bn budget.

• READ MORE: Mark Wild – HS2 reset is ‘well advanced’ 

Four new railway stations are being built between London and the West Midlands as part of the project: Euston and Old Oak Common in London, Interchange in Solihull and Curzon Street in central Birmingham.

HS2 also has a depot and control centre at Washwood Heath in North Birmingham.

The government says the early disposal of HS2 assets will support both regeneration and economic growth in the region.

“As part of a process of reviewing value for money across significant areas of spending, the government will review the maintenance of public assets to further strengthen asset management in government,” said the statement, issued yesterday.

“The government will launch a Strategic Asset Review to report before the next spending review, which will identify opportunities to monetise assets and address barriers to disposals.

“Alongside this, HS2 Ltd is undertaking a sprint project that aims to identify and unlock opportunities for early release of land currently held for HS2 between London and Birmingham, around its stations and depot hub.”