HS2 (the new railway project) has overrun in cost and time almost from conception. Having already trimmed the planned destinations like chopping the branches off a tree – apparently the project costs are still skyward and out of control. The new (Labour) Minister is now looking at the project and considering further ‘cost efficiencies’ and the ‘expectation management’ machine is working well. I do wonder whether the same mistakes that were made on the Maidenhead, Windsor and Eton Flood Alleviation Scheme are now being considered. Could it be that the confusion between value engineering and cost reduction (over twenty years ago now) is being repeated?
