Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussion he (a) has had and (b) plans to have with HS2 Ltd on the £23 million funding required for the movement of 18 per cent of Euston approaches excavation material by Rail.

HS2 Ltd has recently adopted plans to enable excavated material from the construction of the HS2 Euston Station to be moved by rail. These plans require the construction of rail infrastructure to enable a reduction of around 55,000 lorry movements from the Euston area.

HS2 Ltd has also considered opportunities for use of rail transport to take away excavated material from construction of the Euston approaches. This option was rejected on basis of the level of costs required to construct the rail infrastructure and provide and maintain the freight service compared to the limited amount of excavated material that could be removed.

As the design progresses, HS2 Ltd and its contractors are committed to realising further opportunities for the use of rail to transport construction materials to the Euston worksite and will continue to provide regular updates to stakeholders and the local community