HS2 stands for High Speed 2, which is a planned high-speed railway line and network of passenger train services in Great Britain. It is the biggest rail investment ever made in the North of England and is aimed at cutting journey times and increasing capacity. The new railway line is currently under construction in England and is planned to run between the West Midlands and London, with a spur to Birmingham. A network of train services will use the new line and existing conventional track to reach their destinations in the Midlands, North West England, and Scotland. The new high-speed line will run between the North West and the South East, stopping at Manchester, Birmingham, and London with trains continuing on the existing network to Scotland and elsewhere. In total, over 250 miles of new high-speed line is planned across the country, including HS2 Phase One (linking London, Birmingham, and the West Midlands), HS2 Phase 2a (extending the line to Crewe), HS2 Phase 2b (completing the line to Manchester), HS2 East (linking the West and East Midlands with services to Sheffield and Leeds), and Northern Powerhouse Rail (with a high-speed link between Warrington and Yorkshire that relies on HS2 Phase 2b infrastructure) .

The project has both supporters and opponents. Supporters of HS2 believe that the additional capacity and reliability provided will accommodate passenger numbers rising to pre-COVID-19 levels while driving a further modal shift to rail. Opponents believe that the project is neither environmentally nor financially sustainable. The project has faced delays and mounting concerns over the exact route and spiraling costs. The current estimated cost of HS2 is between £72bn and £98bn (at 2019 prices), compared with an original budget of £55.7bn in 2015 (at 2015 prices) . The majority of the project is planned to be completed between 2029 and 2033.

In summary, HS2 is a planned high-speed railway line and network of passenger train services in Great Britain, which is currently under construction in England. It is aimed at cutting journey times and increasing capacity, and the new high-speed line will run between the North West and the South East, stopping at Manchester, Birmingham, and London with trains continuing on the existing network to Scotland and elsewhere. The project has both supporters and opponents, and the current estimated cost of HS2 is between £72bn and £98bn.