HS2 Ltd and the Government have made further announcements today on the extension to HS2 from Birmingham to Leeds, passing through the East Midlands. With such a large-scale investment into the country’s rail infrastructure, it is right that we get a station here in heart of the East Midlands and I welcome the confirmation of this today.
I also welcome the implied rejection of the Derby station proposal, which was put forward by Derby City Council. This proposal would have caused major disruption to many villages along this route – especially those here, in Amber Valley.
I welcome the consideration of an alternative location for the East Midlands hub instead of Toton Sidings. A solution which improves the connection with the centres of Derby and Nottingham and onwards – I hope including Alfreton, Ambergate and Langley Mill – would be welcome.
Following this report, I will keep a close eye on developments of any proposed route and assess any potential impact towards the east of the constituency that could arise from moving the route and East Midlands hub. The indication is that this route would follow the existing proposal – along the M1 corridor, however I will pay close attention to this as no accurate details are available yet.
You can read the report here.