College plan unveiled to train new generation of HS2 rail engineers

Announced by Skills and Enterprise Minister Matthew Hancock, the new college will deliver the specialised training and qualifications needed for high-speed rail.

Business Secretary Vince Cable said: “HS2 is the biggest infrastructure project that this Government is delivering.

“So it is right that a large scale investment in bricks and mortar should also come with investment in the elite skills which will help build it.”

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said that when HS2 is completed it would “underpin the delivery of 400,000 jobs”.

It is expected that HS2 will create up to 2,000 apprentices during the lifetime of construction.

The college is expected to open in 2017, the date for work on the first London to Birmingham phase of HS2 to begin.

The first phase is due for completion in 2026, with a second phase, taking the line on a Y-shaped route to Yorkshire and the North West, due to be finished in 2032/33.

Mr Hancock made the announcement on a visit to the HS2 cross-over station site at Old Oak Common in north-west London.

Also present was former Network Rail chief executive Sir David Higgins who was making his first public appearance since taking over as chief executive of HS2 Ltd.

Sir David said: “This country produces some of the best engineers to be found anywhere in the world.

“The problem is that there aren’t enough of them, and there isn’t a long enough guaranteed work-stream to keep them here. So they tend to go overseas.

“HS2 provides us with a unique chance to address both issues. The sheer length of the project means we can offer people a rewarding career in engineering staying in this country, whilst the multiplicity of skills required means we will be equipping a new generation with experience at the cutting edge of technology.”

The cost of the railway line is currently £42.6bn, with a further £7.5bn expected to be spent on the high-speed trains.