LEADERS of Warrington Borough Council are “disappointed” with HS2 Ltd’s response to the authority’s recent expressions of concern over the proposed route of the controversial high-speed rail link.
Council leader Terry O’Neill (pictured) said: “We asked tough questions because we’re keen to make sure HS2 
delivers the best possible benefits to Warrington, while minimising disruption and blight.
“We have been disappointed with the response. The proposed route will not be popular in the east of the borough.”
In May this year, the council’s leadership wrote to HS2 Ltd asking searching questions about the proposed route, which they said risked giving Warrington “all pain for little gain”.
But after receiving HS2 Ltd’s response, the council is encouraging members of the public to take part in the forthcoming consultation, led by HS2 Ltd.
Cllr O’Neill said: “The proposed line misses out Warrington. We’re not convinced HS2 Ltd fully understands the importance of Warrington as an economic powerhouse within the North West region.
“HS2 Ltd have offered no guarantees over what high-speed rail services Warrington will get, or the impacts on existing services following the building of the new line.”
Cllr O’Neill continued: “Warrington Borough Council will fight for the best deal for Warrington. We will be watching the consultation very closely, looking at responses from Warrington’s residents and businesses. We want to understand what people and companies are saying about how HS2 could affect them.
“We would encourage people to get involved in the consultation in order to make sure their voices are heard.”
HS2 Ltd’s formal consultation in the Warrington will begin in October and continue until January 31 next year.
Officers of the borough council are in regular contact with both HS2 Ltd and local campaign groups.
Council officers have been able to broker meetings between local groups and the high-speed rail company.
An Information event is to be held at Culcheth Sports Club on Thursday, November 21 from 12 noon to 8pm.
Other events to be held nearby may be attended by Warrington residents at Leigh, Winsford, Crewe,
Altrincham, Tatton Park, central Manchester and Wythenshawe.
Reference copies of the consultation documents can be seen at Birchwood Library, Culcheth Library, Warrington Library, Lymm Citizens Advice Bureau, Birchwood Citizens Advice Bureau and Warrington Citizens Advice Bureau.
All the consultation documents and response forms can be found at www.hs2.org.uk or can be ordered from www.dft.gov.uk/orderingpublications or by telephoning 0300 123 1102.
Council disappointed over HS2
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Gary Skentelbery
Experienced journalist for more than 40 years. Managing Director of magazine publishing group with three in-house titles and on-line daily newspaper for Warrington. Experienced writer, photographer, PR consultant and media expert having written for local, regional and national newspapers. Specialties: PR, media, social networking, photographer, networking, advertising, sales, media crisis management. Chair of Warrington Healthwatch Director Warrington Chamber of Commerce Patron Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace. Trustee Warrington Disability Partnership. Former Chairman of Warrington Town FC.
5 Comments
The “best deal for Warrington”, Councillor O’Neill, is for HS2 to be scrapped. Surely this is the time for WBC and Helen Jones to “come out” against this project. Politicians who continue to support it show a complete lack of judgement in view of comments similar to those of Peter Mandelson who recently stated that HS2 was initiated as a political PR stunt.
With enormous increases in the budget for HS2 recently revealed, this project is likely to cost every household in the UK £4000!! Assuming that this type of money is available to spend surely it could be spent in more useful and less damaging ways.
All our local HS2 supporting politicians need to wake up before they get egg on their faces, they need to support their constituents and oppose HS2.
Who is funding the ongoing discussions on this pointless white elephant of a project? We’re pouring more money down the bottomless pit. Don’t imagine for one minute the increases in budget costs announced so far will be the last. History of government related estimates, particularly for politically driven projects, will show they increase exponentionally – and always triple or quadruple by the time final actual figures can be prised out of ministry concerned. By then all the supporters will have knighted, long retired and blame cannot be pinned on anyone. The business case for HS2 was flawed from the outset. The true figures don’t add up and never did. The benefits HS2 purports to bring are needed now not in two three or four decades time. It is no coincidence that France has now decided it wrongly poured so much money into their HS2 equivalent such that the rest of the French rail network is suffering from lack of funds. Our existing rail network is already creaking spend the money on that instead of this pie in the sky.
Just say NO to it.
If it even gets underway, it won’t get any further north than Birmingham. Not convinced at all that it is a worthwhile investment. You can get to London from Warrington in under two hours, which seems perfectly reasonable to me.
If people wish to get to London earlier tell them to get on an earlier train, money would be better spent on improving the existing infastructure and not pouring public money into private company’s pockets. These post nationalised companies including water are an insult to this country. All sold off to fast buck enterprise