Cheshire East Council has hailed the chancellor's announcement that a finalised route for HS2 phase 2a has been confirmed and that the Crewe-Birmingham HS2 link will be ready six years earlier than originally planned as "massive news and a real game changer".
The government has revealed that phase 2a between Crewe and Birmingham will now be completed by 2027 rather than 2033. It is currently progressing plans for phase one between London and Birmingham through the legislative process with a view to finishing by the end of 2016 so that construction can begin in 2017.
According to Cheshire East Council, a HS2 'superhub' at Crewe would help deliver more than 120,000 new jobs and over 100,000 new homes across the Northern Gateway partnership area over a 25-year period. It will boost the region's economy by £10bn a year by 2040 and also greatly increase demand for skilled workers.
The new HS2 hub is expected to reduce journey times from Crewe to London by 45 minutes to 55 minutes, from Crewe to Manchester by 18 minutes to 20 minutes, and from Crewe to Birmingham by 30 minutes to 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, Cheshire East Council leader Michael Jones has announced that the local authority is to establish a new regeneration company to deliver an economic growth strategy for the south Cheshire sub-region and seek cabinet approval for the release of £500,000 from current budgets to deliver the HS2 programme. It said that this strategy would be a key element of the wider Northern Gateway Partnership.
The local authority is working with the Department for Transport and Network Rail to finalise the location of the new HS2 hub station at Crewe.
Jones said: "This is massive news and a real game changer – not just for Crewe and Cheshire East, but for Stoke, north Staffordshire and the region as a whole.
"This is not simply about high speed – it is crucially about capacity and connectivity. The benefits to Crewe and the surrounding area would be massive in terms of jobs and the economy – it's a real once-in-a-generation opportunity, the like of which Cheshire East has not seen before.
"However, as we have consistently said, we want to reach out to our neighbouring local authorities and see the growth and benefits spread to them as well.
"This council has put in an enormous amount of work over the past four years to seek to secure HS2 for Crewe and the new regeneration company will build on that.
"The confirmation of the HS2 route – which makes Crewe the logical place to locate the North West hub – is something we have been looking forward to with real anticipation.
"We want the right solution for Crewe and the wider region – that would enable the economic benefits to be enjoyed across the whole sub-region, stretching along a corridor from north Staffordshire to North Wales and Merseyside.
"A hub station in Crewe would act as the gateway to the Northern Powerhouse and provide a vital link to the Midlands Engine. HS2 promises to bring a 21st century railway revolution to Crewe and utterly transform its economic prospects and those of the surrounding region."
Osborne also announced that John Cridland, the former director general of the Confederation of British Industry, would chair Transport for the North. And the chancellor confirmed the government's commitment to the full 'Y-shaped' HS2 network servicing Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield.
In addition, transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin said that Manchester Piccadilly continues to look like the right location for HS2's Manchester terminus and revealed that the government remains of the view that a Manchester Airport station is likely to be the right option.
He has also asked HS2 to explore options for how the rail network might best serve Stoke-on-Trent and Macclesfield, including through classic-compatible trains via Handsacre Junction.
Image note: Artist's impression of the proposed Crewe hub.