HS2

[abc]

Today's announcement from the government re the start of HS 2 has been greeted with howls of protest, indignation, opposition etc. At the same the government are constantly being criticised for allegedly not investing in major infrastructure schemes to help growth.

It seems they are damned if they do and damned if they don't. This always seems to be the case in this country regardless of the colour of the government. Perhaps we should stop criticising governments (whichever party) and take responsibility ourselves and for the consequences of our actions and views. We always seem to want our cake and to eat it to but it doesn't work like that.

 

[Biscuit]

I feel genuine sadness for those that this will affect but is it a good thing for the country? Yes, it is. We need to keep progressing and high speed rail is vital to keeping us all economically-connected. I'm hoping it'll ease the London housing market by offering a more realistic commute time into the capital. As you say, it's a 'cake and eat it' thing.

 

[The Antikythera Mechanism]

That's the problem with politicians, they always have to be diametrically opposed, no matter what. Decisions should be taken on what is good for the country, not what is in the Party manifestos. Seems that nothing short of war unites these hypocrites.

 

[Rich Suvner]

Today's announcement from the government re the start of HS 2 has been greeted with howls of protest, indignation, opposition etc. At the same the government are constantly being criticised for allegedly not investing in major infrastructure schemes to help growth.

It seems they are damned if they do and damned if they don't. This always seems to be the case in this country regardless of the colour of the government. Perhaps we should stop criticising governments (whichever party) and take responsibility ourselves and for the consequences of our actions and views. We always seem to want our cake and to eat it to but it doesn't work like that.

It seems silly to me that HS1 and HS2 will not link directly - to have to make a transfer between St Pancras and Euston seems ridiculous and somewhat undermines the advantages of linking the north with Europe -as does the line not connecting directly to Heathrow but having to use a branchline.

 

[Djmiles]

I'm for it, but would rather have seen them build a maglev network.

 

[yxee]

I was a bit sceptical about it at first, but linking Manchester to London in 1 hour 8 minutes is astonishing.

 

[Leekbrookgull]

Would rather see the money spent on the whole network being electrified,state of the art signalling and improvement of track lay-out to improve services.

 

[HawkTheSeagull]

Would rather see the money spent on the whole network being electrified,state of the art signalling and improvement of track lay-out to improve services.

This, put the money into having a much better and more reliable network at the moment, electrify all remaining major routes, buy new trains and increase capacity - then if demand keeps up, re-visit it.

Its going to be incredibly expensive to use anyway, so people will continue to use the current services as it will be cheaper - its just a great big waste of money to me. Once we have a perfect rail network - then look at HS2.

Not to mention it will cost each UK household £1,000 - to those in the areas it will be then it might be good for them - but for those in the far Southwest or on the Isle of Wight for example - its a massive waste.

 

[Common as Mook]

Birmingham to London in 48 minutes? That's absolutely incredible and this project shoul dbe given full backing by everyone.

 

[Hamilton]

It will mean all of Britain's unemployed will be able to visit each other much faster.

 

[Berty23]

I was a bit sceptical about it at first, but linking Manchester to London in 1 hour 8 minutes is astonishing.

I agree with this but I don't understand what will happen to the areas bypassed by HS2. What about cities like Coventry, stoke, Leicester etc. if everything is being ploughed into Manchester, brum, leeds and Sheffield could there not be a huge in intended consequence here?

Remember this is not until 20 years from now though. Will people still travel to meetings in 20 years? 20 years ago no one had heard of the Internet. Now I could be sat on the top of a hill in England and have a video call to my brother in the Canadian mountains while watching a cricket Match taking place in Australia.

 

[Camicus]

Public money being paid to private companies to profit and then the public will have to pay through the nose to use it.

 

[Titus]

Birmingham to London in 48 minutes? That's absolutely incredible and this project shoul dbe given full backing by everyone.

Indeed, and provide lots of jobs at a time when they are most needed.

 

[Berty23]

Birmingham to London in 48 minutes? That's absolutely incredible and this project shoul dbe given full backing by everyone.

It is only one hour 20 mins now and that train stops three times en route. Will half an hour make that much difference?

Coventry is an hour from London. How much has it benefited from being an hour away?

 

[HawkTheSeagull]

It is only one hour 20 mins now and that train stops three times en route. Will half an hour make that much difference?

Bare in mind it wont be stopping anywhere before Birmingham too (except the Airport), if you didnt stop the current trains and upgraded the route in other places you could shave time off that too.

All well and good having shorter journey times, but will joe public really pay through their noses extra to be somewhere a bit quicker or would they use a cheaper option ?

 

[TWOCHOICEStom]

Bad for people who are genuinely affected by this. But great for the country overall..

 

[sten_super]

There are clearly major problems with the rail infrastructure, but I'm not sure one additional 'high speed' line is going to solve those - as others have suggested I think there are more urgent things that need doing to the network.

The other major problem I have with it is the likely impact on the cities en route, such as Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester. Yes, business men from these places will be able to get to London more quickly (and vice versa, on the rare occasions that might happen) - but if they're going that route to conduct business they'd make the journey regardless of whether it's half an hour quicker or not. The party that will most benefit from HS2 will be the commuters - which will mean more people living in these cities and commuting to London. Is that a positive impact?

 

[Berty23]

There are clearly major problems with the rail infrastructure, but I'm not sure one additional 'high speed' line is going to solve those - as others have suggested I think there are more urgent things that need doing to the network.

The other major problem I have with it is the likely impact on the cities en route, such as Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester. Yes, business men from these places will be able to get to London more quickly (and vice versa, on the rare occasions that might happen) - but if they're going that route to conduct business they'd make the journey regardless of whether it's half an hour quicker or not. The party that will most benefit from HS2 will be the commuters - which will mean more people living in these cities and commuting to London. Is that a positive impact?

But how much will it cost? Currently for the fast train from Coventry to euston (an hour) the cost is close to 9k a year. I expect the HS 2 to be more expensive. How many can really afford that?

 

[sten_super]

But how much will it cost? Currently for the fast train from Coventry to euston (an hour) the cost is close to 9k a year. I expect the HS 2 to be more expensive. How many can really afford that?

Fair point. You'd like to think that they'll price it competitively, given that they need people to actually use it, but I don't trust them (DfT, train companies, Network Rail) to do anything sensibly. Still, given the relative cost savings of living in (say) Leeds versus London I'd imagine it'll still be worthwhile for some people. If it's not commuters paying for use of the line I really can't see how anyone's going to make any money out of it (to cover maintenance, let alone profit).

 

[Berty23]

Leeds to London season ticket currently 13.5k per annum. I guess this would become close to 20k at least. Not sure that would make economic sense