Andy Burnham eyes new Manchester Airport station and underground Piccadilly Station after HS2 axe

The scrapping of HS2 although ‘disappointing’ has left Greater Manchester with an ‘opportunity’, Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham told council bosses.

At the latest meeting of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), the borough’s council bosses heard how the billions leftover from the controversial scrapping of the northern leg of High Speed Rail 2 earlier this month could be used to fund improved services in the region. Mr Burnham shared his hopes for a new railway line between Liverpool and Manchester as well as a new station at Manchester Airport and an underground station at Piccadilly. 

“You will be aware of the very public debate (around HS2) and the manner in which the decisions were made which we don’t think were done in the right way at all,” Mr Burnham told Bury Town Hall. “We don’t consider it acceptable the way the city region was treated with that abrupt decision (to cancel the northern stretch of HS2).

“There are opportunities that have arisen from what has been announced. The £12bn for a new line between Liverpool and Manchester has given us a new role to shape that new line and its route. At this stage we would keep our ambitions in place for a station at Manchester Airport and an underground station at Piccadilly.”

Mr Burnham went on to hail the success of the Bee Network launch last month – which saw the bus network brought back under council control for the first time in decades. After some teething problems to begin with, the former Leigh MP shared figures to show how the V1 and V2 (buses on the Leigh Guided Busway route) are ‘significantly better than the service they replaced’. 

He concluded: “I believe we can say quite confidently that the Bee Network has certainly landed.”