HS2: Campaigners fear construction traffic for phase two
Campaigners from a village living in fear of being blighted by HS2 construction traffic, have welcomed added scrutiny over the costs of the project as a House of Lords committee called for a “major rethink”.
Woore, on the Shropshire border, has been facing the prospect of being used as a route for lorries carrying materials to build phase two of the rail line.
The proposed route would see about 500 HGVs travel from the A51 and turn on to the A525 at Woore daily during the peak of construction.
Michael Cowey, chairman of Woore Parish Council, which has been working to mitigate the impact of the work on the village, said they were in favour of any increased focus on the costs and impact of the plan.
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He said: “We have been saying this money could be better spent on other infrastructure projects. We saw what David Davies said and we agree, this money could be spent on more beneficial infrastructure.
“We are in constant conversations with our MP Owen Paterson, he is on board and we have another meeting with HS2 in June to discuss other routes to avoid the parish.”
Stopped
Mr Cowey added: “It would be great if they stopped it at Birmingham. I know they have got the money for that section, but they should look at it again and get the true costs.
“I think the MPs and the people in power are starting to realise that it is a tremendous cost and will it achieve what it says it will? It will be out of date before it is built. Technology moves on and there are a lot of other ways to improve services to get to London.”
Councillor Cowey said that people had been left with the frustration of the impact on the local roads hanging over them.
He said: “It was estimated originally that we could have something like 600 HGVs a day at the peak.
“This goes on for four and a half years. It would start in late 2020 with the building of the compound and would continue.
“We have got our own issues already with the A51, getting to the doctors, to the hospital, schoolchildren, getting to college. It is a very busy road and we just think they have not thought it through.”
