HS2 tunnelling under Manchester is pie in the sky
Speculation about the HS2 project potentially tunnelling under Manchester has ignited a heated debate among authorities and residents alike. If Britain’s high speed railway reaches as far north as Manchester, there’s a proposal that it does so in a way that might not be noticed, by going underground. Not surprisingly, that’s not universally welcomed. The prospect of being undermined by a squadron of vast tunnel boring machines has been met in Manchester with all the enthusiasm of a plan for a civic parade down Deansgate to honour a Liverpool Premiership win. In other words, in the local parlance: “not a chance, our kid.”
Want to read more?
You have read all of your free premium articles for this month. Please become a subscriber to keep reading.
Subscribe now!
Take advantage of our exclusive offer to get full access to all premium content.
Would Mancunians really prefer the building of a viaduct cutting the city in half and land clearing around Piccadilly which would hardly be disruption free ? Certainly the rest of the north would prefer the delivery of a real NPR with through trains to london integrated rather than dealing with a legacy of short termism represent by the idea of a turn back at Piccadilly – which is frankly a result of dithering about Euston design and trains to Leeds which is wasting vast sums of money.
We managed to build a tunnel under the English channel and London is full of tunnels, so why would Manchester want a rubbish overground solution?
I’m thoroughly confused as to how an article about Manchester and HS2 can fail detail the current – almost universally deplored – solution involving vast divisive viaducts and an unhelpful terminus. Or anything at all about Northern Powerhouse Rail. Speaking as a Northerner, I can confirm precisely nobody I have spoken to is against switching to an underground option that provides through services and interconnectivity. Yes, it’s more expensive, but build it once and build it right, as they say!
Under Manchester is tricky lots of structures already there
This article doesn’t actually point out any specific engineering issues in building a tunnel. No issues about ground type, no subterranean tunnels interfering. Just a paragraph using adverbs to death.
These projects need do be done correct otherwise it’ll won’t stand the test of time. I.e. why doesn’t Birmingham have a tunnel? Instead an awkward spur.
What is the reason for there being no chance? Is it just accepting political reality and just accept anything other than what you’re given.
London has quite a few of those underground tubular tunnels. Imagine if they proposed putting trains on viaducts in London!
Manchester as it deveops should already have an underground it will cost more the longer we wait and wait on the nimby’s. Having one from HS2 will spur on the movement and cheapen the cost of an underground since the tech and recent experience would be in place…
This one sided article fails to mention the existing HS2/NPH proposals ALREADY tunnel under south/east Manchester respectively, with only 3km above ground into the already outdated Piccadilly terminus.
Like all modern cities,Manchester needs a “Crossrail” through station NOT another Victorian terminus, and for a mere 3km increase in tunnelling, this is well worth striving for. Contrast cities like Florence, Gothenburg and Berlin with Birmingham, saddled with its Curzon St branch line !
This one sided article fails to mention the existing HS2/NPH proposals tunnel for miles under south/ east Manchester with only 3km into Piccadilly above ground.
Why not put it all underground and get the Crossrail Manchester deserves and the north of England needs ?
Prime points of HS2 was linking provincial cities & to the continent. They were axed. The raison d etre for HS2 dissolved. HS2 is not fit for purpose.
When HS2 was announced NPR was not on the horizon. Reluctantly TfL created NPR – HS2 should have been shelved with a new design incorporating NPR & HS2 with continental provincial city access.
They knobbed on the cut back NPR using new & old lines & some sections of HS2, giving a circuitous run across Cheshire instead of a near straight line.
NPR can be on a partially filled redundant ship canal then thru some tunnel to east-west aligned Victoria. HS2 can branch in around Warrington serving Mcr and Lpool.
Not difficult to figure out.
Why would tunneling under Manchester be any different than tunneling under any other city? I suppose when the ship canal was first mooted, you got the dissenters. The articles load of rubbish.lets doff our caps to our betters in London and get the crumbs.