Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the design capacity and projected number of trains per direction per hour in (1) 2026, and (2) 2043, for (a) HS2 at Euston approaches and Old Oak Common, and (b) the West Coast Main Line at Euston approaches, Watford and Milton Keynes.

The Government’s current requirements for HS2 specify that on completion of Phase 1 it will be capable of enabling a train service of up to 11 trains per hour into and out of Euston and 14 trains per hour in each direction at Old Oak Common. On completion of Phase 2 the system shall enable up to 18 trains per hour into and out of Euston and at Old Oak Common.

The Government’s aim is that all towns or cities which currently have a direct service to London will retain broadly comparable or better services once HS2 is completed. Some preliminary work on the future timetable for the West Coast Main Line was undertaken in the early part of 2014, but it is important to stress that the actual timetable operated in the 2020s will depend on the development of the railway and train services over the course of the coming decade. Network Rail is currently working with the rail industry, including the Department for Transport and train and freight operators, to consider future service levels in light of the opening of HS2, and these will be determined through normal rail industry access allocation processes in due course.