The Secretary of State for Transport on 24 January 2022 deposited in Parliament the Hybrid Bill for the construction of HS2B – from Crewe to Manchester. The various Bill and plan documents have been supplied to the Council. These plans contain some amendments resulting from the previous consultation processes, but do not meet Council’s detailed objections in full, and obviously do not respond to Council’s overriding objection to the project as a whole.
The Parish Council submitted its objections to the scheme both in principle and in its details – that is in relation to the first two of the opportunities just described, and submitted a petition of objection to Parliament.
Two former members of the Parish Council acted as representatives of the Council in appearing before Parliament’s HS2B Select Committee on 26 June 2023 since these former members had by far the greatest knowledge of the proposals and their history. The Parish Council’s petition to the Select Committee and the script of the Council’s presentation to the Select Committee can be found on this website at HS2 Documents.
The appearance of the Pickmere representatives before the Select Committee was streamed on Parliament TV and this can be viewed using the following link:
https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/2f0d2234-9a6f-4356-b990-d4f059ebfffc?in=18:18:09
The script prepared by the two former parish councillors for presentation to the Select Committee can be found using the link HS2 petition script 230626
The slides relating to the presentation can be found here Document – Petition slides June 2023
The Select Committee will report back to Parliament in HS2b in due course, and Parliament will consider how to progress the scheme.
The Parish Council has prepared a working summary of the detailed impacts of the scheme. These can be found on this website under HS2 Documents, or by using this link.
The following YouTube link brings up a ‘video’ of the HS2 route from Crewe through to Manchester.
Aerial video of the proposed route of HS2 between Crewe and Manchester – YouTube
As the shot passes through Pickmere (after about 5 minutes) you will see the enormous proposed Smokers Brook viaduct, across Linnards Lane and the Brook, and then the next key landmark is the Radio Telescope on Milley Lane.
Please bear in mind that this is a representation of the completed solution, including proposed tree planting (that will in fact take decades to mature), and that it does not show the long years of construction when there will be a series of workers’ and storage compounds situated along the route and serviced by Pickmere Lane and other local roads, and considerable embankment and viaduct construction work within and close to Pickmere, all involving a very substantial number if HGV movements through the parish.
The Parish Council does now have a single plan which shows the proposed scheme as it passes through Pickmere, and the various compounds and other enabling works which are part of the scheme.
If you require any more information on the proposals or how to object, or if you would like to inspect this plan, please contact the Acting Parish Clerk in the first instance.