HS2

Attitudes to health and safety in the construction sector have evolved a lot over the years.

I’ve worked in the railway sector for nearly 20 years, and during that time the industry has become far more focused and professional in promoting better practice. Yesterday’s World Mental Health Day highlights that this…

In October last year, the National College for High Speed Rail opened its new Birmingham and Doncaster campuses with a great deal of fanfare.

Built with the vision of training thousands of engineers to work on HS2, the colleges were described by transport secretary Chris Grayling as “vital” for the delivery…

The National College for High Speed Rail opened two sites 12 months ago to deliver the skills for HS2’s construction. One year on, funding and student shortfalls have raised questions about its viability, as Lucy Alderson discovers.

A man in his mid-30s is slumped against the wall of the Doncaster National High Speed…

People say no news is good news. What HS2 wouldn’t give for even a few weeks of no news.

Following the procurement scandals that dogged the client last year, the Department for Transport has this week been forced into defending the appointment of Margaret Thatcher’s former private secretary to a complaints-handling role…

As the client behind the £55.7bn line approaches its 10th birthday, CN looks at the major pressure points the line has faced on the road to main construction.

Public demonstrations, procurement scandals, ballooning costs: HS2 has faced numerous challenges spanning nearly a decade, yet still it soldiers on. Following the establishment…

“The challenge for the next 12 months is improving the public image,” HS2 chief executive Mark Thurston told me when I interviewed him back in March.

The focus was on starting to build that credibility, he added. If the first five months of the year was about rebuilding public trust in…

Exclusive: Conflicts of interest, audit scandals, Carillion: HS2’s chief executive has endured a tougher first 12 months in the job than he could have ever imagined. In his first full interview since taking over, Mark Thurston reveals to CN what he has learned.

“Never waste a good crisis,” Mark Thurston tells me as we sit down…

‘We think 2018 will be steady, but with HS2 it’s going to be much busier in 2019.’

It’s a familiar refrain from people working in civils when you ask them for their outlook on the market, whether they’re a tier one on an HS2 framework or a subcontractor hoping to pick…