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HS2 has hit the headlines many times this year - but as the arguments wore on and as parts of the project were downgraded, work on the London to Birmingham leg of the controversial project has continued.

Today developer HS2 Ltd has released a set of images showing the work done on the project in 2021.

It's been a mixed year for HS2. While work has progressed on the first stage of the line - as shown below - the plans have seen major changes.

In November, the Government confirmed what had been feared for some time - that the planned phase 2b 'eastern leg' between Birmingham and Yorkshire via the East Midlands had been downgraded, with the section to Sheffield and Leeds scrapped.

But just this month we reported that a Hitachi and Alstom joint venture has been awarded the £2bn deal to build the fastest trains ever produced in Britain. The move will support 2,500 jobs across the º£½ÇÊÓƵ, particularly at Hitachi in County Durham and Alstom in Derby.

Mark Thurston, chief executive of HS2 Ltd, said: "It has been a year of major moments for HS2 – from the start of tunnelling, to hitting 20,000 jobs, to awarding the contract to build our trains – 2021 really showed the incredible momentum on Britain’s biggest infrastructure project.

"HS2 is moving forward, creating jobs, enhancing skills, benefiting º£½ÇÊÓƵ businesses and building a low carbon, high capacity railway that will change the way we travel in Britain."

Milestones in 2022 are set to include the unveiling of the completed renovation of the historic Old Curzon Street Station building in Birmingham and the launch of the London Tunnel Boring Machines.