THE director general of the Rail Delivery Group has sounded a clarion call for HS2, on the eve of the publication of David Higgins' reappraisal of the scheme following his appointment as executive chairman.

David Higgins took over as the head of HS2 Ltd in the last week of February, and his report into the scheme is to be released on Monday.

RDG director general Michael Roberts has paved the way for the announcement by saying that the HS2 debate is no longer a matter of yes or no, and that it's time to start discussing the details.

Mr Roberts said: “HS2 must become the backbone of a growing railway if we are to meet the challenge of booming demand for extra passenger and freight services that Britain faces now and in the future.

“The time has come to move on from debating if the new line is necessary, and focus on planning how services will be run, drawing on the expertise of a country with the safest and fastest growing major railway in Europe. The rail industry will work with government, HS2 Ltd, passenger groups and suppliers to help ensure the new line is a big success.”

The RDG said there were five priorities to be considered. How HS2 will 'plug into' the existing network seamlessly, how current services can be improved to take advantage of the released capacity, how HS2 services will be planned to make the best use of the new route, buying the right trains and setting fares at the right level.

The Group said that 'one of the most significant benefits of HS2 is the extra capacity released on the existing railway when services migrate to HS2. This will create an opportunity to run extra and new passenger and freight services where getting the destinations and timetables right will be crucial', and that 'prices should be broadly comparable with those on other sections of the network to ensure the new services are affordable and encourage more rail travel on HS2 and the existing railway. Tickets for HS2 should be sold through the same national retailing outlets as for the existing network'.

Meanwhile speculation has been mounting about the possible recommendations in David Higgins' report. These include a widely-expected abandonment of the existing plan to connect HS2 with HS1, at least on the presently-proposed route in north London, as well as more about the possibility of starting work in the north as well as in the south, potentially combining the two phases into one project.