All this concern with cost-cutting our infrastructure is just childish household-budget politics. The shinkansen ran overbudget several times by immense amounts, but nobody even thinks about that now, they just enjoy the benefits of having actual modern infrastructure
Vivid_Editor4194 on
Why are we still banging on about journey times? I thought the whole point of these high speed lines was to free up capacity for more slow trains on the existing network.
ProjectZeus4000 on
Plans unveiled:Â no plans in article.Â
Show me a fucking map!  Pet hate on news articles taking about new transport links or housing developments
Dalecn on
No build it to a high speed spec and run it as a high speed fucking line it makes the most fucking sense in the long term.
ken-doh on
Just build it already. Stop fucking around. Population is 70 million and still rising, we need the capacity.
Labour are even worse than the tories, and I voted Labour.
Due_Cranberry_3137 on
Please stop trying to build infrastructure. We clearly can’t or don’t have the skills.
Appropriate-Wasabi94 on
Northern leg of HS2 will be proudly provided by Stephensons Rocket.
Glanwy on
Still say it should have been started in Cardiff, Edinburgh and London
Used-Drama7613 on
The northern part was never the expensive part of HS2, it’s the southern part that’s expensive.
juzsp on
It’s only cheaper because it hasn’t started yet. You can put whatever number you want on a proposal. a few years into the project and we will be back to the same numbers as HS2.
Iain_0 on
Problem is there no long term infrastructure planning agreed by any party.
At same time you have everyone moaning about cost but if keep delaying course it going cost more.
HS2 should of be kept to build because any rail project getting built in this country going cost 100B or more because everything has to be built from ground up can’t keep saying upgrade existing rail way as most near 100 years old can’t be upgraded without huge upheaval.
Most of Europe was sort lucky start from scratch because after ww2 most of infrastructure was destroyed.
In UK we had damage nothing to compare against Europe.
opinionated-dick on
Wish Labour would come out and say- the reason HS2 bloated in price is majorly down to the frustrating localist planning mechanisms that require placating local people so much we had to build tunnels and divert cheaper stretches.
And after all this extra overspend, do you really think those people are now happy with HS2 ploughing through the Tory heartland of the Chilterns? Of course not. It is massive cost for little return. So why bother.
We totally have to accept that in the sake of national interest sometimes people will be pissed off. But not as pissed off when the North continues to languish and the entire economy injuncts the one area that has the most potential to plug that growth gap.
I’ve heard nothing from Labour on the way forward post northern powerhouse and levelling up. They say they are the party of growth and renewal, and the north voted them in. Where is the political rhetoric to back this up?
12 Comments
All this concern with cost-cutting our infrastructure is just childish household-budget politics. The shinkansen ran overbudget several times by immense amounts, but nobody even thinks about that now, they just enjoy the benefits of having actual modern infrastructure
Why are we still banging on about journey times? I thought the whole point of these high speed lines was to free up capacity for more slow trains on the existing network.
Plans unveiled:Â no plans in article.Â
Show me a fucking map!  Pet hate on news articles taking about new transport links or housing developments
No build it to a high speed spec and run it as a high speed fucking line it makes the most fucking sense in the long term.
Just build it already. Stop fucking around. Population is 70 million and still rising, we need the capacity.
Labour are even worse than the tories, and I voted Labour.
Please stop trying to build infrastructure. We clearly can’t or don’t have the skills.
Northern leg of HS2 will be proudly provided by Stephensons Rocket.
Still say it should have been started in Cardiff, Edinburgh and London
The northern part was never the expensive part of HS2, it’s the southern part that’s expensive.
It’s only cheaper because it hasn’t started yet. You can put whatever number you want on a proposal. a few years into the project and we will be back to the same numbers as HS2.
Problem is there no long term infrastructure planning agreed by any party.
At same time you have everyone moaning about cost but if keep delaying course it going cost more.
HS2 should of be kept to build because any rail project getting built in this country going cost 100B or more because everything has to be built from ground up can’t keep saying upgrade existing rail way as most near 100 years old can’t be upgraded without huge upheaval.
Most of Europe was sort lucky start from scratch because after ww2 most of infrastructure was destroyed.
In UK we had damage nothing to compare against Europe.
Wish Labour would come out and say- the reason HS2 bloated in price is majorly down to the frustrating localist planning mechanisms that require placating local people so much we had to build tunnels and divert cheaper stretches.
And after all this extra overspend, do you really think those people are now happy with HS2 ploughing through the Tory heartland of the Chilterns? Of course not. It is massive cost for little return. So why bother.
We totally have to accept that in the sake of national interest sometimes people will be pissed off. But not as pissed off when the North continues to languish and the entire economy injuncts the one area that has the most potential to plug that growth gap.
I’ve heard nothing from Labour on the way forward post northern powerhouse and levelling up. They say they are the party of growth and renewal, and the north voted them in. Where is the political rhetoric to back this up?