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HS2 rail leg to Leeds scrapped, Grant Shapps confirms - THE GUARDIAN UK
The eastern leg of HS2 to Leeds has been scrapped and a full high-speed east-west line linking Manchester to Leeds will not be built, the government has confirmed, as it insisted faster train journeys would be delivered earlier and cheaper under a £96bn rail plan.
The high-speed rail network will go ahead to Manchester but be curtailed at an existing east Midlands station rather than run from Birmingham to Leeds, while the TransPennine route will be improved mainly through upgrades rather than a brand new line.
The transport secretary, Grant Shapps, told the Commons that the changes and investment would bring better rail connections for passengers years earlier in a network that “works for every community and every passenger, right across the UK”.
However, the move has been met with anger and disappointment in the north of England and Midlands, with Labour describing the new plan as “crumbs” after promises of a full joined-up high speed network.
The prime minister, Boris Johnson, said as recently as last month that the government would build Northern Powerhouse Rail, but the route that northern leaders hoped would be at the centre, a new high-speed line from Manchester to Leeds via Bradford, will not be built.
The HS2 line from London to Birmingham and Manchester will still be built.