We asked an expert what canceling the HS2 Leeds branch means for UK high speed rail

Following leaked reports that the UK government would be scrapping plans for the UK’s long-awaited high-speed rail to extend to Leeds, transport secretary Grant Shapps has announced in the House of Commons that the eastern leg of HS2 will now reach only from Birmingham to the East Midlands, and that an additional high-speed line between Leeds and Manchester would no longer be built. Instead, the newly published Integrated Rail Plan for the North and the Midlands, sets out proposals to upgrade existing lines to reduce journey times between the cities sooner (although not by as much). This contrasts with previous…

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