HS2 Chairman Reveals £100m Cost for Bat Protection Barrier

The chairman of HS2 Ltd has stated that a specialized barrier, intended for the protection of rare bats, is projected to cost £100m. Sir Jon Thompson informed attendees at a rail industry conference that the bat safeguarding installation in Buckinghamshire was deemed necessary to satisfy Natural England, given that bats hold legal protected status across the UK. This curved barrier, measuring 1km (0.6 mile), is designed to span the railway tracks adjacent to Sheephouse Wood, located near Calvert in Buckinghamshire, with the purpose of shielding bats from disruption caused by high-speed trains. Sir Jon remarked that “no evidence that high-speed trains interfere with bats” exists. He stated, “We call it a shed,” adding, “This shed, you’re not going to believe this, cost more than £100m to protect the bats in this wood.” Natural England clarified that it had not mandated HS2 to “adopt this structure”, but rather its function involved providing “comment on whether the proposed mitigations will work”. Alternative, more costly solutions, such as constructing a bored tunnel and altering the railway’s path, were evaluated. According to Sir Jon, following Natural England’s approval of the design, HS2 Ltd incurred expenses amounting to “hundreds of thousands of pounds” for legal counsel and environmental experts, due to the local council’s refusal to sanction the project. He elaborated, “In the end, I won the planning permission by going above Buckinghamshire Council’s head.” Buckinghamshire Council maintains its opposition to HS2 and has previously voiced criticism of the project for “unnecessarily damaging Sheephouse Wood”. Peter Martin, the deputy cabinet member for HS2, stated: “Whilst the council wishes to protect species such as Bechstein’s bats, one of the country’s rarest species, it was never supportive of what seemed like extremely excessive costs for a single structure.” He added, “HS2 Ltd has always been adamant that the bat tunnel structure, which has been designed and built by HS2 Ltd’s own contractor, and the associated costs, were necessary, but it is not something we insisted on.” Sir Jon asserted that this situation exemplified the UK’s “genuine problem” concerning the completion of significant infrastructure developments. He informed the Rail Industry Association’s annual conference that HS2 Ltd was obliged to secure 8,276 approvals from various public entities to construct phase one of the railway connecting London and Birmingham. He remarked: “People say you’ve gone over the budget, but did people think about the bats [when setting the budget]?” He continued, “I’m being trite about it, but I’m trying to illustrate one example of the 8,276 of these [consents].” Oliver Harmar, Chief Operating Officer of Natural England, commented: “Development and nature must go hand in hand.” He further stated, “HS2 Ltd is required by legislation to avoid harm to the environment, and it is for them to make choices, consider risks, and factor in costs when deciding how to do this, whether by avoiding species and sites protected for nature or by investing in mitigation to limit harm where the route passes through sensitive sites.” Sir Jon, who assumed leadership of the project after Mark Thurston departed from his chief executive position in September 2023, issued a warning in January that the projected cost for phase one had escalated to potentially £66.6bn – a significant increase from the £37.5bn estimate in 2013. A spokesperson for the Department for Transport stated: “Just last month the transport secretary launched an independent review to get a grip on the cost of HS2 and ensure lessons are learned.” The spokesperson added, “We will continue to work closely with HS2 Ltd to deliver an environmentally responsible railway that protects the natural environment, while overseeing greater accountability of costs and ensuring taxpayers’ money is put to good use.” For news from Beds, Herts and Bucks, follow BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content found on external sites. Information regarding our external linking policy is available.