Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood HS2 London-West Midlands May 2013
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PHASE ONE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT Community Forum Area Report 24 | Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood HS2 London-West Midlands May 2013 ENGINE FOR GROWTH DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT Community Forum Area Report ENGINE FOR GROWTH 24 I Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood High Speed Two (HS2) Limited, 2nd Floor, Eland House, Bressenden Place, London SW1E 5DU Telephone 020 7944 4908 General email enquiries: [email protected] Website: www.hs2.org.uk © Crown copyright, 2013, except where otherwise stated Copyright in the typographical arrangement rests with the Crown. You may re-use this information (not including logos or third-party material) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/ or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or e-mail: [email protected]. Where we have identified any third-party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned. To order further copies contact: DfT Publications Tel: 0300 123 1102 Web: www.dft.gov.uk/orderingpublications Product code: ES/21 Printed in Great Britain on paper containing at least 75% recycled fibre. CFA Report – Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood/No 24 I Contents Contents Draft Volume 2: Community Forum Area Report – Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood/ No 24 5 Part A: Introduction 6 1 Introduction 7 1.1 Introduction to HS2 7 1.2 Purpose of this report 7 1.3 Structure of this report 9 Part B: Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood – overview of the area and description of the Proposed Scheme 10 2 Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood 11 2.1 Overview of the area 11 2.2 Description of the Proposed Scheme 15 2.3 Construction of the Proposed Scheme 19 2.4 Operation of the Proposed Scheme 33 2.5 Community forum engagement 33 2.6 Route section main alternatives 34 2.7 Proposals for further consideration 39 Part C: Environmental topic assessments 40 3 Agriculture, forestry and soils 41 3.1 Introduction 41 3.2 Policy framework 41 3.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 41 3.4 Environmental baseline 42 3.5 Construction 44 3.6 Operation 46 1 CFA Report – Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood/No 24 I Contents 4 Air quality 47 4.1 Introduction 47 4.2 Policy framework 47 4.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 47 4.4 Environmental baseline 47 4.5 Construction 48 4.6 Operation 49 5 Community 51 5.1 Introduction 51 5.2 Policy framework 51 5.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 52 5.4 Environmental baseline 52 5.5 Construction 54 5.6 Operation 55 6 Cultural heritage 57 6.1 Introduction 57 6.2 Policy framework 57 6.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 57 6.4 Environmental baseline 58 6.5 Construction 59 6.6 Operation 61 7 Ecology 62 7.1 Introduction 62 7.2 Policy framework 62 7.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 62 7.4 Environmental baseline 63 7.5 Construction 66 7.6 Operation 71 8 Land quality 73 8.1 Introduction 73 8.2 Policy framework 73 8.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 74 8.4 Environmental baseline 74 8.5 Construction 76 8.6 Operation 78 2 CFA Report – Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood/No 24 I Contents 9 Landscape and visual assessment 79 9.1 Introduction 79 9.2 Policy framework 79 9.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 80 9.4 Environmental baseline 80 9.5 Construction 81 9.6 Operation 84 10 Socio-economics 88 10.1 Introduction 88 10.2 Policy framework 88 10.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 88 10.4 Environmental baseline 88 10.5 Construction 90 10.6 Operation 90 11 Sound, noise and vibration 92 11.1 Introduction 92 11.2 Policy framework 92 11.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 92 11.4 Environmental baseline 92 11.5 Construction 92 11.6 Operation 93 12 Traffic and transport 96 12.1 Introduction 96 12.2 Policy framework 96 12.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 96 12.4 Environmental baseline 98 12.5 Construction 99 12.6 Operation 102 13 Water resources and flood risk assessment 106 13.1 Introduction 106 13.2 Policy framework 106 13.3 Assessment scope and key assumptions 106 13.4 Environmental baseline 107 13.5 Construction 108 13.6 Operation 111 14 References 114 2 3 CFA Report – Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood/No 24 I Contents List of figures Figure 1: HS2 Phase One route and community forum areas 8 Figure 2: Area context map 12 Figure 3: Birmingham interchange station visualisation 17 Figure 4: Indicative construction programme for the area 32 Figure 5: Business Sector Composition in Solihull Borough and the West Midlands 89 List of tables Table 1: Location of construction site compounds 21 Table 2: Location of temporary worker accommodation sites 23 Table 3: Demolition works 25 Table 4: Watercourse diversions 25 Table 5: Highway and road diversions 27 Table 6: Footpath, cycleway and bridleway diversions 27 Table 7: Restricted accesses 28 Table 8: Viaducts, underbridges and overbridges 29 Table 9: Holdings affected by the Proposed Scheme 43 Table 10: Preliminary evaluation of likely value of protected and/or notable species occurring within this section of the route 65 Table 11: Significant residual construction effects on ecological receptors within this section of the route 70 Table 12: Significant residual operational effects on ecological receptors within this area 72 Table 13: Significant landscape effects during construction 82 Table 14: Significant visual effects during construction 83 Table 15: Significant landscape effects during operation year 1 (2026) 85 Table 16: Significant visual effects during operation year 1 (2026) 86 Table 17: Typical vehicle trip generation for site compounds in this area 100 4 CFA Report – Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood/No 24 I Contents Draft Volume 2: Community Forum Area Report Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood/No 24 Structure of the HS2 draft Environmental Statement The draft ES documentation for the purpose of this consultation comprises: • A non-technical summary (NTS) – providing a summary of the Proposed Scheme, the likely significant effects of the Proposed Scheme, both beneficial and adverse, and the means to avoid or reduce the adverse effects; • A main report – consisting of two volumes: ȃ Volume 1: Introduction to the Environmental Statement and Proposed Scheme which provides an introduction to HS2, an overview of the hybrid bill process and the environmental impact assessment (EIA) methodology, an introduction to consultation and engagement, the main strategic and route-wide alternatives considered; and ȃ Volume 2: Includes 26 Community Forum Area (CFA) reports, each with a separate corresponding set of drawings, which together provide the assessment of local environmental effects. An assessment of the effects of the Proposed Scheme on a route-wide basis is presented in Report 27. HS2 Ltd set up 26 community forums along the line of route of the Proposed Scheme, as a regular way of engaging with local communities1. Volume 2 of this draft ES supports this engagement strategy by providing a draft ES report for each CFA. This is a report for the Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood. The draft ES has been written in a clear and accessible manner, however, on occasion it has been necessary to use technical terms. Given this, a glossary of terms and list of abbreviations for all draft ES documentation is provided. 1 Details of these community forums are provided on the HS2 Ltd website at http://www.hs2.org.uk/have-your-say/forums/community-forums. Accessed 24 April 2013. 5 CFA Report – Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood/No 24 I Contents Part A: Introduction 6 CFA Report – Birmingham Interchange and Chelmsley Wood/No 24 I Introduction 1 Introduction 1.1 Introduction to HS2 1.1.1 HS2 is planned to be a Y-shaped rail network with stations in London, Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, South Yorkshire and the East Midlands, linked by high speed trains running at speeds of up to 360 kilometres per hour (kph) (225 miles per hour (mph)). 1.1.2 HS2 is proposed to be built in two phases. Phase One (the Proposed Scheme), the subject of this draft ES, would involve the construction of a new railway line of approximately 230km (143 miles) between London and Birmingham that would become operational by 2026; with a connection to the West Coast Main Line (WCML) near Lichfield and to the existing HS1 line in London. The Phase One route and the 26 CFAs are shown in Figure 1. 1.1.3 On opening, Phase One would run up to 14 trains per hour (tph). HS2 trains would be up to 400 metres (m) long with 1,100 seats during peak hours. Beyond the dedicated high speed track, these high speed trains would connect with and run on the existing WCML to serve passengers beyond the HS2 network. A connection to HS1 would also allow some services to run to mainland Europe via the Channel Tunnel. 1.1.4 Phase Two would involve the construction of lines from Birmingham to Leeds and Manchester; with construction commencing around 2027, and planned to be operational by 2033. After Phase Two opens, it is expected that the frequency of train services on some parts of the Phase One route could increase up to 18tph. 1.1.5 The Government believes that the HS2 network should link to Heathrow and its preferred option is for this to be built as part of Phase Two.