Railroad Forums 

  • Boris The Builder (High Speed 2)

  • Discussion about railroad topics everywhere outside of Canada and the United States.
Discussion about railroad topics everywhere outside of Canada and the United States.

Moderators: Komachi, David Benton

 #1533529  by Gilbert B Norman
 
Now that Mr. Johnson has shown "he's no fluke" in British politics, guess it's time to become Caesar:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/11/worl ... n-hs2.html

Fair Use:
.LONDON — Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain on Tuesday pushed ahead with a multidecade high-speed rail project that is now expected to cost more than $130 billion, underscoring his commitment to government intervention in rust-belt areas of the middle and north of England that helped elect him.

Delays and spiraling costs had set off a fierce discussion about whether the proposed railroad, called High Speed 2, was a vital investment in Britain’s creaking transport infrastructure or a financially ruinous white elephant. Significant parts of Mr. Johnson’s Conservative Party and several of his closest advisers are passionately opposed to the plan.

But since winning a big parliamentary majority in elections in December, Mr. Johnson has tried to cast himself as a unifying figure who wants to invest in a high-technology economy, spread prosperity outside the south of England, and bring the country together after Brexit.

The line would first link London with Birmingham, the biggest city in the English Midlands, by some time around 2030, before splitting into two northward routes in a second phase scheduled to be completed by 2040...
I haven't been in the Mother Country since '86 when my Sister resided there and the railway system had one name whether in Inverness or in Penzance - British Railways.

I defer to others, such as "commuter" Mr. Dunville, or our "Subjects" around here as to what chance this project could come to pass.
 #1533539  by johnthefireman
 
I think it's an essential project, despite the delays and cost overruns. Those promoting the project have done an appalling job of explaining it to the public. They have focused almost exclusively on the speed, which is really not a major issue in a country as small as Britain. In fact HS2 is needed because of the lack of capacity on the British rail network. Since the 1960s, so much capacity has been lost, with lines closed, quadruple lines doubled and double lines singled, sidings and relief lines lifted, and much land alongside the railway sold off for private development, that Britain's railway tracks are congested, with high speed trains, commuter services and freight (or "goods", as we used to call it back in the day when it all had one name!) all sharing the same inadequate routes. What HS2 will do is add extra capacity, thus freeing up train paths on the classic lines and allowing the high speed trains to be separated from the commuter and freight services.
 #1533615  by David Benton
 
Maybe its simpler now they don't have to worry about Euro funding / rules. ???
Curious to think what you think of Boris, John? I Really can't place him , but I'm pretty sure he is not a clone of Trump , as some say , Thank God.
 #1533636  by johnthefireman
 
David Benton wrote: Wed Feb 12, 2020 9:27 pmCurious to think what you think of Boris, John? I Really can't place him , but I'm pretty sure he is not a clone of Trump , as some say , Thank God.
Well, what can I do when the group moderator asks me a political non-railway related question?!

I confess to being a longstanding Labour supporter with socialist leanings, so my view of Boris is probably not hard to guess. Let me try to be as objective as I can. He bears some similiarities to Trump: both come from privileged, entitled, rich backgrounds; both are trying to take their countries back to some imagined and rose-tinted past greatness; both are populists; both are mendacious, to say the least; both are narcissists; neither has much respect for the established processes of constitution, law and custom; neither has much understanding of nor respect for the poor nor for human rights; both favour isolationism and unilateralism over internationalism and multilateralism; both are serial womanisers; both lead countries which are divided pretty much 50-50 and are highly polarised over the issues of the day, and realistically neither stands much chance of healing those divides; and both have strange hair styles. But the US and UK systems are very different, and there are also individual differences. Boris is clearly far more educated and intelligent. And Boris is desperate for international trade deals to try to minimise the damage done by Brexit, so although the USA is clearly one important trade partner for the UK, it is not the only one, and Boris and Trump are likely to have clashes over trade. The Huawei saga is one example.
Last edited by johnthefireman on Thu Feb 13, 2020 9:47 am, edited 1 time in total.
 #1533764  by David Benton
 
In the interest of balance ,
The left view From the Guardian ,
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/202 ... -tells-mps
The right view from the Daily Telegraph.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/20 ... ssic-kind/
The Independent.co.uk
https://www.independent.co.uk/independe ... 28506.html
and a Tabloid view, The sun , of course.( first time I've looked at it in years, the things I do for you guys !))
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/10944778/ ... ition-hs2/
 #1533765  by johnthefireman
 
David Benton wrote: Fri Feb 14, 2020 12:21 ama Tabloid view, The sun , of course.( first time I've looked at it in years, the things I do for you guys !
I also haven't looked at the Sun for years. I wonder if they still have nudes on page 3?!
 #1533875  by johnthefireman
 
The Chinese have certainly built the Kenyan standard gauge railway quickly, although it's not a high speed line. But unfortunately the funding was stopped and the line finishes in the middle of nowhere.
 #1534431  by johnthefireman
 
HS2: Stephenson given new rail link role (BBC)
Andrew Stephenson has been appointed minister for HS2 - the high-speed rail link connecting London with Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds. He also has responsibility for the Transpennine and Northern Powerhouse Rail routes. Earlier this month Boris Johnson said he would appoint a minister to "restore discipline" to HS2...