The high-speed rail network (HS2) will bring Birmingham’s Curzon Street station within an hour’s commute of Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, London, York, Preston and Wigan.
The Curzon Street masterplan outlines proposals for the regeneration, covering the area that will house the HS2 station in Birmingham city centre, along with £724 million in investment into the surrounding area.
Curzon Street station will be the first brand new intercity terminus station built in Britain since the 19th century.
Eventually, there will be 9 trains per hour direct in each direction from the station.
Birmingham City Council’s Curzon Street investment plan will see £900 million spent on regenerating the area around the new station.
The scheme will take place over 30 years, leading to the creation of several new neighbourhoods including 4,000 new homes, 36,000 jobs and 600,000 square metres of commercial development.
Over the coming decade, Birmingham is expected to undergo a change that will see substantial economic growth furthering its dynamic presence on the international stage, with HS2 expected to attract significant investment to the wider West Midlands area.
The HS2 scheme was finally given the formal ‘go-ahead’ by the government back in April amid concerns over the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
The announcement provided many construction workers with certainty that there would not be any further delays to the rail project.
HS2 construction officially begun last month – as Boris Johnson travelled to Solihull to visit the site where work to create the interchange station is underway.
The Prime Minister said: “HS2 is at the heart of our plans to build back better – and with construction now formally under way, it’s set to create around 22,000 new jobs.
“As the spine of our country’s transport network, the project will be vital in boosting connectivity between our towns and cities.”