I am not really affected but HS2
Now likely to cost 100 billion, not open for another ten years and be slower. You could not make it up. Please god don’t let The Boy find out!
That is approx 3/4 billion per mile!
The 2 existing London to Brum lines had times of 1h2m (WCML) and 1hr15m (CML), but as HS2 Ltd is wholly owned by Network Rail, and Network Rail control the timetables, those times were increased to make HS2 look more viable.
I get a lot of comments from the train spotters on my gaytube channel where I cover a lot of HS2 stuff, and they are wanking themselves senseless over it, and how me MUST have it, but not one of them can state what HS2's purpose is. Nor can HS2 for that matter.
As speed has already been laughed out, it became about capacity - not that the existing 2 lines are remotely close to capacity anyway, so much so that after Starmer's government confirmed their support for the project, Network Rail suddenly found another 400 free slots on WCML!
So as the capacity thing has been laughed out, now it's about freight. HS2 can't carry freight, so it's about freeing up capacity on WCML for freight... ....but that would impact passenger services that people actually want to use, so that's been laughed out as well.
According to HS2's business plan, HS2 Phase 1 has to carry over 550,000 passengers a day to "only" need 50-60% subsidy on ever fare. In 2019, the peak of rail usage in the UK (the world changed in 2020, and hybrid working remains a thing), WCML and CML combined carried around 120,000 a day over their entire networks, not just London to Brum.
Lastly, as somebody who regularly uses both services, hardly anyone travels between London* and Birmingham.
*And as it currently stands, HS2's London terminus is Wormwood Scrubs. The section from the Scrubs to Euston is not yet funded, although HS2 Ltd are doing some work which the taxpayer is picking up anyway.
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Topic: What has P*ssed you off today? (Read 1656874 times)