New plans for HS2 extension revealed

Plans to extend HS2 from Bedford to Leeds via Leicester, and from Birmingham to Nottingham, have been submitted to the government.The economic benefits from the two new connections could be at least £1.4bn, according to Midlands Connect.The organisation has sent the business case for the extensions to the Department for Transport while it will also be presented to the HS2 Oakervee review.The move comes after the government revealed last week that HS2 could be delayed by up to seven years.Under the new plans, it would take 33 minutes to get from Birmingham to Nottingham and 46 minutes from Leicester to Leeds, more than halving the current journey times.The capital cost of implementing the new services is estimated at £170m, including the Toton junction and infrastructure upgrades to the Midland Main Line to enable an extra hourly service from Bedford to Leeds, via Leicester.