The chief executive of HS2 Mark Wild has insisted the high-speed railway has “great value, intrinsic value” and will “prove its worth” despite a string of bad news
The chief executive of HS2, Mark Wild, has defended the high-speed railway project, insisting it will “prove its worth”.
His comments come in the wake of criticism from MPs who described HS2 as an example of “how not to run a major project”. The Commons Public Accounts Committee warned last week that the cost of building the railway between London and the West Midlands “might be close to £80bn”.
Speaking at an event on Tuesday to launch a study highlighting how the project has sparked economic growth in west London, Mr Wild said: “HS2 will prove its worth”.
He also insisted his ongoing “reset” of the programme will “break the cycle of this continuous drip-feed of bad news”. Mr Wild, who joined HS2 Ltd at the start of December 2024, said: “The project has got itself into some difficulty, so my job is to reset it, put it back on track. It is true, we did the same thing in Crossrail, which should give us a lot of hope and benefit going forward.”
Mr Wild was hired to lead the Crossrail project – a new east-west railway line across London – in November 2018 after the project suffered major delays and ran overbudget. He said he has “spent a lot of time thinking about the reasons” why there has been “such difficulty” with HS2.
He summarised the reasons as construction work starting with only “immature design”, awarding civil engineering contracts that were not “as effective as we thought”, and being “out of sequence” with civil engineering delays meaning later steps such as testing and putting trains on tracks cannot begin.
Rail minister Lord Hendy told the event – attended by west London business leaders – that the opening of HS2 will be “a day of national celebration”. He added: “It’s a timely reminder for not only those here, but those outside this room, that actually keeping the faith in HS2 – which is a project half built – is worth doing, and we need to celebrate what’s been achieved along the way too.”
A study sponsored by HS2 Ltd found the railway is fuelling £10bn surge for West London’s economy. Consultants from Arcadis poured over data highlighting a 22% spike in planning submissions encircling HS2’s Old Oak Common station since it got the Royal ascent in 2017.
Mr Wild described west London as the capital’s “new property development hot spot”. In relation to Old Oak Common station, Mr Wild said “nobody’s built on this scale”, and the opening will be a “catalytic event”.
He added: “When we open Old Oak Common station, you will be 31 minutes from Birmingham International, the airport. You’ll be 42 minutes from the centre of Birmingham. (There will be) great connectivity to the West Country, Heathrow airport and, of course, into London on the Elizabeth line. Old Oak Common will become one of the most connected places in the United Kingdom.”
