Plaid Cymru: HS2 Construction to Impact Welsh Passengers’ Journey Times and Finances

An MP has stated that the construction of London’s new HS2 rail station will result in Welsh passengers being “robbed” of both time and money. This construction, located at Old Oak Common in west London, is projected to extend journey times to London by a minimum of 15 minutes on various dates until 2030, due to trains being rerouted to Euston instead of Paddington. The UK government has indicated its efforts to minimise any disruption. Although the high-speed rail project is situated entirely within England, Wales has not been allocated any additional funding from UK ministers in connection with it. Ann Davies of Plaid Cymru informed MPs that “it’s well documented that Wales is being robbed of £4bn in consequential funding from HS2, now we learn that Welsh passengers will be robbed of their time”. MP Davies, representing Caerfyrddin, made these remarks during a parliamentary discussion concerning the effects of Old Oak Common station on railway services serving the west of England and Wales. She stated, “Trains travelling along the Carmarthen to London line could be cut off from Paddington and diverted to Euston for at least seven years due to the construction of Old Oak Common.” She posed a question to UK transport minister Lilian Greenwood, asking “why the people of Wales should be denied a modern, fast and reliable railway, like those of other European countries?” She further noted, “Despite having 5% of the UK population and 11% of track miles, Wales has only received 1-2% of rail enhancement funding in recent years.” She also highlighted that the proportion of electrified railway routes in England stands at 44%, whereas in Wales, it is merely 7%. She concluded, “Old Oak Common is yet another example of how unjust the current arrangements are for Wales.” In response, Greenwood informed MPs that Old Oak Common serves as a “crucial enabler” for the government’s “growth mission,” designed to enhance connectivity to other services. However, she acknowledged the concerns regarding the construction’s impact on Wales and the west of England. She further stated that the rail industry has been “working hard” in preparation for these works and has invested £30m to alleviate their impact. The minister confirmed that rail services connecting south Wales and London are anticipated to experience a slight, permanent increase in journey times due to Old Oak Common. Nevertheless, she noted that no decisions have been made regarding whether all GWR trains would incorporate it as a future stop. Greenwood stated: “The station is being constructed to allow all Great Western services to call, but no decision has been made on the future timetable.” She continued: “Nonetheless building this station requires a realignment of the Great Western mainline to curve around new platforms. Unfortunately that means that even trains that do not stop at the station will have a small increase in journey times.” Several MPs, including some representing Welsh constituencies, have expressed apprehension regarding the prospect of all GWR services stopping at Old Oak Common once completed, and the subsequent effect on journey durations. Greenwood affirmed: “There will be a small but permanent journey time impact for all services passing through Old Oak Common without stopping.” She mentioned that the government is exploring measures to reduce this estimated 90-second impact. However, Greenwood cautioned that if some or all GWR services were to make a stop at Old Oak Common, this would further extend journey times. She elaborated: “A suggestion has been made that this could add four to seven minutes to journey times. Obviously that would slow down those services, but of course would allow potential interchange with the Elizabeth line and access to parts of London via the Elizabeth line and potentially via London Overground.” Addressing Ann Davies’s concerns regarding investment in Welsh railways, Greenwood stated that the Wales rail board convenes regularly to deliberate on issues pertinent to both the UK and Welsh governments. She also noted that UK ministers and Welsh transport minister Ken Skates are scheduled to meet shortly to discuss transport matters in Wales. The subsequent period of disruption is set for between 27 and 29 December, during which trains traveling from south Wales to London will be rerouted from Paddington to Euston. Information concerning the 2026 works schedule remains unconfirmed. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC disclaims responsibility for the content of external websites. Further information on their approach to external linking is available.