London gets poorer deal for HS2 compensation than countryside

 
HS2: 'might not be achieved in the 2020s' says Lord Adonis

More than 1,500 homes blighted by the planned HS2 line will be bought by the Government in a £1.3 billion compensation scheme announced today.

Two thirds of owners will get the full market value of their homes plus a lump sum of 10 per cent of the value, up to a maximum £47,000, for the hassle of moving out.

They include owners of 338 properties that will be demolished for the high speed line and 634 homes that are within 60 metres of it.

People in rural areas will be eligible for more help than Londoners under details that went out for consultation from the transport department today.

Outside the M25, there will be a “voluntary purchase zone” covering homes between 60 and 120 metres from the high-speed rail line, which will run from London to Birmingham through a swathe of countryside.

Around 591 families in this zone can ask the Government to buy their homes off them at full price, but they will not be eligible for a lump sum.

Inside the M25, however, there will be no voluntary purchase zone, meaning Londoners who live between 60 and 120 metres from the line will not get the option.

A Department for Transport source said the reason for the disparity was that rural residents were found to be more badly affected by high speed trains nearby. “Because rural areas are less built up, the impacts are likely to be felt further away,” said the source.

“In more urban areas, a voluntary purchase zone would encompass homes a number of streets away from the line where the impact is likely to be negligible.” Transport Minister Simon Burns said the package struck “the right balance” for homeowners and taxpayers.

“HS2 will completely transform the UK,” he said. “No major infrastructure project on this scale can be built without some impact on local communities, but I am determined to do everything I can to minimise the effect on those closest to the line.”

Owners will be paid a market value reflecting what the homes would have been worth “unblighted”, only owner-occupiers will be guaranteed payments.

Families may also have an option to sell their homes now to the Government but rent them back until construction starts in their area.

In addition, a long term hardship scheme will be set up to help those who need to move during the construction of HS2 but who are unable to sell their home.

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