Plans for high speed rail line crossing the Vale
Government proposals for a new high speed railway will cut through the Vale.
The government has published proposals for a new high speed rail route that would initially link London to Birmingham and ultimately extend to Manchester, Leeds and Scotland.
The preferred route would come up from Amersham, crossing the southern edge of Wendover, Stoke Mandeville and Aylesbury, then running east of Waddesdon before picking up the path of the disused railway line past Quainton, Calvert and proceeding up to the edge of Brackley. There are also two other alternative routes.
Public consultation
Responses to the public consultation had to be made by 29 July 2011. Further details can be found by following the link to the HS2 website. We have considered the proposal for HS2 and oppose them as there is no business case for it. See our full response to the consultation on the downloadable files below. You can also view a response from a consortium of local authorities (51m) below.
Key features of the high speed rail link
- A new dedicated track linking London to Birmingham with no intermediary stops aimed at reducing journey times by approximately 30 minutes
- Up to 14 trains an hour running at speeds of up to 225mph
- Trains up to 400 metres long and carrying up to 1100 people per train
- Some trains will be maintenance vehicles
- Trains to be powered by electric overhead cables
- Tracks that have gentle gradients requiring construction of embankments, cuttings, tunnels and viaducts
Timeframe
- Consultation ran until 29 July 2011
- Decision on whether to go ahead later in 2011
Design, route assessment, land acquisition and further legal matters could take 6 - 7 years
- Construction could begin in 2019
- Rail link could open by 2026
HS2
The government established a company called High Speed Two Ltd (HS2) in 2009 to look at the route options. HS2 considered a number of alternatives including those that would follow the M1 and the West Coast Mainline but discounted these on the grounds that they would have been less direct and involved more demolition of properties.
Properties that could be affected
More detailed work still has to be done by HS2 identifying those properties that could be affected and how disruption and noise intrusion could be kept to a minimum. They are also looking at how to minimise noise from the operational railway. There is likely to be significant impact on people who live or work close to the route during the construction phase and when it becomes operational. The government also acknowledges that inevitably some buildings including homes will need to be demolished should they make the decision to go ahead. Under the law, residential owners directly affected would have access to statutory blight provisions.
People with property close to the proposed route looking to sell their homes now could be affected. The government intends to introduce an Exceptional Hardship Scheme so that home owners with a pressing need to sell their homes can apply to the Government to buy it at the full market rate. The scheme is expected to be formally launched on 20 August.
You can find details of the HS2 Exceptional Hardship scheme on the link below or write directly to:
High Speed Two Ltd - Exceptional Hardship Scheme Consultation
Eland House
Bressenden Place
London
SW1E 5DU
email: ehsconsultation@hs2.gsi.gov.uk
Consultation on the proposed Exceptional Hardship Scheme proposals closed in June 2010. Further details will be announced but application forms for the exceptional hardship scheme can now be downloaded from www.HS2.org.uk or call 0207 9444 908.
AVDC action
The AVDC cabinet agreed that based upon the information and evidence currently available, it opposes the suggested proposals for a High Speed rail network as there is no business case for it.
The cabinet also has significant concerns about the Exceptional Hardship Scheme and responded to the consultation key points included.
- The scheme should include industrial/commercial properties (including agricultural premises and land, particularly those with livestock), second homes and buy to let homes.
- The scheme should apply to all suggested routes – “preferred” and “preferred
alternatives”.
- “Close vicinity” should be clearly defined.
The authorities in Bucks are working together on this and held a summit in June 2010. Links to the report from the summit are shown below.