High Speed Two route options leaked

[john_p]

Looks like a local MP has heard the route options
http://davidlidington.wordpress.com/2010/03/11/hig...

DOT Leaks said:

One would be to follow the M40 corridor, either tunnelling under or skirting High Wycombe, then running along the A4010 through the Bradenham valley, going around Risborough and off towards Haddenham.

A second option would be to follow the line of the A413 past Chafont, Great Missenden and Wendover, going round Aylesbury to the West and then over towards Quainton.

A third would be the A41 corridor past Hemel Hempsted, Tring and Aston Clinton then up along the Herts/Bucks/Beds border.

Didn't want those Tory votes anyway

[Bri957]

AFAIK this is all getting released later today.

[Mojocvh]

Hope they install good security at the same time....

[john_p]

Announcement will be at 1215.

I'm guessing the A41 route, as the terminus was stated to be near Euston, and it could possibly run alongside the A41. That's a lot of green belt though..

[Bri957]

Adonis will announce in the Lords at 11:30am.

[john_p]

Crossrail interchange "just west of Paddington" and another interchange near Birmingham airport

London Terminus - Euston

Birmingham - Curzon St

Route line to be .. "tunnel from Euston to Paddington interchange, [Acton link?] to Ruislip area, Amersham in tunnel toward Aylesbury, A413 past Wendover, Great Central alignment to Brackley then Warwickshire, East of Birmingham and into Birmingham through Water Orton, then up to Litchfield"

[tangent police]

More Keynesian bullst! STOP IT AND SORT THE fkING COUNTRY OUT, YOU S

[john_p]

tangent police said:

More Keynesian bullst! STOP IT AND SORT THE fkING COUNTRY OUT, YOU S

lol

But it will break down the "North-south divide" according to Adonis!

So I think it'll be
- New interchange near Paddington (Shepherds Bush?)
- Greenford Branch Line to South Ruislip
- Chiltern Line to Denham
- At some point a tunnel along the A413 up to Amersham
- Following the A413 to Aylesbury
- Then the old lines up to Brackley and on

Be really interesting to see what they do around Denham / Chalfonts etc!

Edited by john_p on Thursday 11th March 12:04

[mattviatura]

Don't know if this has been done before and I know less than nothing about railways...

I'm absolutely not anti-London but shaving a few minutes off the journey from Heathrow to the city doesn't seem worth the money. Is this purely an olympics thing?

[FourWheelDrift]

mattviatura said:

Is this purely an olympics thing?

First train to run would be by 2025 at the earliest. So maybe the next time we host it.

[john_p]

mattviatura said:

Don't know if this has been done before and I know less than nothing about railways...

I'm absolutely not anti-London but shaving a few minutes off the journey from Heathrow to the city doesn't seem worth the money. Is this purely an olympics thing?

It's not even scheduled to start construction till 2015ish so Olympics isn't the reason. The journey time from Birmingham to London will be 30 minutes so an impressive drop from the current timings - but I wonder if this will be priced far above commutable prices.

[mattviatura]

FourWheelDrift said:

mattviatura said:

Is this purely an olympics thing?

First train to run would be by 2025 at the earliest. So maybe the next time we host it.

Whoops

[bobbylondonuk]

tangent police said:

More Keynesian bullst! STOP IT AND SORT THE fkING COUNTRY OUT, YOU S

THEY ARE DOING EVERYTHING THEY CAN!

[Silver993tt]

FourWheelDrift said:

mattviatura said:

Is this purely an olympics thing?

First train to run would be by 2025 at the earliest. So maybe the next time we host it.

and by that time the likes of Germany/France/Italy/Spain will have moved even further ahead with rail technology and service.

[grumbledoak]

It seems the long, slow death rattle of the railways will continue, at vast expense.

Seriously, if the latter part of the 20th century taught us anything, it was that railways belonged to the 19th century, when they competed with horses and carts. Far too little vision was used when it may have been possible to construct a viable future solution, and now the South East is far too densely populated to build it.

So, this will drag Birmingham (but not the usual station) a few minutes closer to London. Big deal.

As for bridging the North/South divide, surely most proper Northerners consider Birmingham to already be in the South? Laughable.

Edited by grumbledoak on Thursday 11th March 12:25

[CommanderJameson]

grumbledoak said:

surely most proper Northerners consider Birmingham to already be in the South? Laughable.

Doubtful.

[tangent police]

CommanderJameson said:

grumbledoak said:

surely most proper Northerners consider Birmingham to already be in the South? Laughable.

Doubtful.

Anything past Exeter is up north

That reminds me, I've got to go over to England today, hope I don't get a nose bleed

Edited by tangent police on Thursday 11th March 12:46

[zcacogp]

john_p said:

I wonder if this will be priced far above commutable prices.

I'm absolutely sure it will. How much is a 'commuter' season ticket from Birmingham to London anyway? And how many will be able to afford that, from their taxed salary?

It also raises the question of how this sort of project will be paid for. The country simply doesn't have the money for large-scale projects like this. The M6 extension had to be a toll road as it was paid for by a private company who want their money back eventually. Has anyone yet worked out who will pay for Crossrail?

As far as I can see, the government can announce all their like - it's all pure pie-in-the-sky and will almost certainly remain that way.


Oli.

[Digga]

CommanderJameson said:

grumbledoak said:

surely most proper Northerners consider Birmingham to already be in the South? Laughable.

Doubtful.

AFIK Birmingham (and the Black Country) considers itself to be in the Midlands. HTH.

[CommanderJameson]

Digga said:

CommanderJameson said:

grumbledoak said:

surely most proper Northerners consider Birmingham to already be in the South? Laughable.

Doubtful.

AFIK Birmingham (and the Black Country) considers itself to be in the Midlands. HTH.

Which is also where us Northerners tend to consider it to be.