The secretary of state for transport, Mr Chris Grayling, and mayor of London, Mr Sadiq Khan, accepted Morgan’s resignation as chairman of Crossrail, while Grayling also accepted his resignation as chairman of HS2.
Mr Allan Cook has been appointed as the new chair of HS2, while a successor as chair of Crossrail is to be announced in due course.
Morgan’s resignation comes days after he told the BBC he expected to be sacked following delays to Crossrail, which announced on August 31 that opening of the central section of London’s £14.8bn Elizabeth Line between Paddington and Abbey Wood would be delayed from December until autumn 2019.
Crossrail said at the time the delay was needed to complete the final infrastructure and extensive testing required to ensure safety and reliability.
“Sir Terry has been an integral part of Crossrail for almost a decade and I would like to thank him for his dedication and the expertise he brought to the role,” Grayling says. “I am also grateful to him for his work as chair of HS2. HS2 is the country’s biggest infrastructure project and, with his wealth of experience, Allan Cook is the right person to oversee the project as it progresses towards full construction.”
Cook’s previous experience includes serving as co-chair of the Defence Growth Partnership, chair of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, as a director of JF Lehman and Company, and as a former lead non-executive director for the then-Department of Business, Innovation and Skills.
The government says HS2 is continuing to work on the completion of the London - Birmingham section of HS2 in line with the target delivery date of 2026.
