Fabienne Viala, the former CEO of Bouygues UK, has been appointed to the top table at HS2 Limited, the company delivering the high-speed rail project.
Viala is one of six new non-executive directors joining the HS2 Board, following a push by the Department for Transport (DfT) to fill vacancies relating to major infrastructure, health and safety, transformation, commercial management, and systems integration.
Viala served as chairperson and chief executive of Bouygues UK for eight years before company veteran Philippe Bernard took over in early 2025.
During her tenure, she led Bouygues UK’s construction arm in the delivery of more than 80 projects including major regeneration schemes as well as work in the public sector and data centre market.
Other members joining Viala this month include Simon Willis and Neil Reynolds, with Stephen Murphy, Anna McMeel and Rob McIntosh coming aboard on 1 January 2026.
It follows Joanna Davinson and Stephen Hughes stepping down in early December.
HS2 chairman, Mike Brown, said: “I’m delighted to welcome six brilliant additions to the HS2 Limited Board who will significantly strengthen our leadership and oversight of the project at such a crucial moment for HS2.
“All six are leaders in their field and will ensure that the Board has the right balance of skills and experience to effectively drive the HS2 reset – putting us in the best position to deliver the railway safely, efficiently and for the lowest reasonable cost.”
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Back in November, Ruth Dunphy joined HS2 as chief transformation officer (CTO), having previously held the role of transformation director, UK & Ireland, at BAM.
Dunphy spent nearly six-and-a-half years working at BAM, having initially joined the contractor as finance director in 2019, then progressing to the job of global finance director a year later, before assuming the role of transformation director in 2022.
Between 2006 and 2008, she was the finance director for water and gas services at Carillion.
Morag Stuart will also join HS2 in the new year as chief commercial officer, drawing on her experience as chief programme officer at the NHS New Hospital Programme, and in previous roles with the Ministry of Defence, Thames Tideway Tunnel, and the Olympic Delivery Authority.
HS2 chief executive Mark Wild has said revised estimates and dates for the major infrastructure project will be published “soon”, as HS2 is now tens of billions of pounds over its original budget of £33 billion, with recent total cost estimates expected to exceed £100 billion.
The James Stewart Review, commissioned in 2024, made 89 recommendations to the HS2 project.
In Spring, a specialist taskforce was assembled to bring the Elizabeth line into service.
Viala is also a non-executive director at construction software platform .
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