Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to figure 17 of his Department's publication, High Speed 2: from Crewe to Manchester, the West Midlands to Leeds and beyond, Cm 9355, whether the stated journey time benefits in the HS2 Phase B: Command Paper (Figure 17) for journeys from Sheffield Midland Station to Birmingham and Leeds include the upgrading of the existing line north of Sheffield Midland station to form the northern loop.

As stated in the publication High Speed 2: from Crewe to Manchester, the West Midlands to Leeds and beyond, journey times on HS2 from Sheffield to Leeds and Birmingham are indicative estimates. The journey time benefits shown for Sheffield to Birmingham are estimated for services using the southern connection from the Eastern Leg of HS2 into Sheffield Midland station; journey times for Sheffield to Leeds are estimated for services using an electrified existing line north of Sheffield Midland and a connection back onto the Eastern Leg of HS2, forming the ‘loop’.