UK's world's most expensive high-speed rail project

(CLO) At a cost of up to $416 million per mile (1.6 km), the UK's High Speed Rail 2 (HS2) project is considered the most expensive rail project in the world .

In the UK, major infrastructure projects often go over budget. HS2 is no exception as costs continue to rise.

Since it was launched in 2012 with a total projected cost of $42.8 billion for nearly 400 miles of new rail, HS2 has been run by five different chief executives and seven different chairmen. The estimated cost of the first two phases has now risen to $130 billion.

Check out the progress of the Bromford Tunnel as part of the UK's massive HS2 rail project. Photo: Christopher Furlong

Work is underway at 350 sites, including four giant 2,000-ton machines deployed to dig new tunnels. About 22.5 kilometers of it have been completed in the three years since construction began.

If completed, HS2 would represent some incredible civil engineering feats. The biggest benefit of the Y-shaped line would be to spur growth outside London by creating a new, fast route between neglected post-industrial regions in the Midlands and the north of England. These areas suffer from poor transport links, resulting in some of the lowest productivity and most deprivation in Europe.

HS2's northern tunnel portal under construction in the Chiltern Hills near Great Missenden. Photo: Chris Gorman

Designed to travel at 400 km/h, the tracks will accommodate the world's fastest regular trains when they begin running in the 2030s. The tracks will require much less maintenance than traditional lines.

On the ground, HS2 Limited, the parent company tasked with building the railway, and its contractors have made every effort to minimise its impact on the environment along the route, adjusting the route to limit damage to woodland and areas of outstanding natural beauty.

But as prices continue to climb, public willingness to pay has declined. And as the cost of Phases 1 and 2 ballooned to an estimated $130 billion, the UK government has come under increasing pressure to find ways to save money.

Hoai Phuong (according to CNN)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/du-an-duong-sat-toc-do-cao-dat-nhat-the-gioi-cua-vuong-quoc-anh-post321975.html