HS2 - High Speed Rail Link. We dont need to spend £160m per mile
Costing over £160m per mile, the proposed HS2 High Speed Rail Link will not only help further bankrupt our country but will slash and scar our countryside, leaving a permanent reminder to our children of politics gone mad and a dynasty of greed of gargantuan proportions.
Joanne Barnes
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1058 comments
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Anonymous
commented
Stop this development which does not serve the communities it passes through and if it goes ahead will destroy vast tracks of countryside and wildlife.
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Nigel Dean
commented
A moronic and unjustifiable idea being forced through by the government. High speed broadband, video conferencing and updating the existing railways are all better solutions.
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Ben Hughes
commented
While understanding we need to build infrastructure for the future health/growth of Britain, it seems fundamentally wrong to a) spend the vast sums of money and b) cause the environmental damage when there is no robust business case for it in the first place!
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jjw
commented
The recent Oxera review suggests that HS2 will not help the regions and will increase the North-South divide, based on experience in other countries. The business case is weak at best. Anyone who has walked in the Chilterns will appreciate the special beauty of this area. The loss of historic buildings and beautiful countryside if this scheme goes ahead would be a tragedy and would benefit few. Surely it cannot be justified on cost benefits or environmental grounds?
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Noddy
commented
The link is a dreadful waste of public money, especially at a time of major economic distress. The existing railway network is underinvested and when the money is available it should be spent on improving what we already have. There is already sufficient capacity to meet future needs and this can be improved through further investment. HS2 is not something that the public have ever asked for or voted in favour of. It has been dreamt up by politicians and introduced to the public quite suddenly through the back door. It will cause incredible long term disruption to the areas in proximity of the route and will ultimately scar the landscape and create noise pollution in those areas. Apart from the obvious environmental impact of wrecking areas of outstanding natural beauty this project would result in more vehicles on the road during the rail distruption (e.g. when Euston station is rebuilt) and ultimately encourage more unnecessary travelling on half empty trains. Such projects (e.g. HS1)always overrun on timetable and cost, and if it is allowed to begin we are signing up to an open ended timetable of disruption to areas on the route and a financial black hole.
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Bengi
commented
This project will cause more misery and despair to the people living on the proposed route than the recent riots and vandalism has to the people of Tottenham, Croydon. Manchester. West Midlands etc.
The difference is that the hurt will be permanent, the torture and financial hardship will be inflicted over many years, the damage is not covered by insurance and compensation will be restricted and the lives of future generations as well as current ones will be blighted. We all feel for the small number of people in Tottenham who have lost their homes and businesses. What about the hundreds/thousands living between London and Birmingham who will lose theirs.And why. It won't ease the current rail congestion and surely in 10 to 50 years time, it will seem absurd to shunt large tonnages of people around the country. Fixed rail transport is inflexible. The rail system of the 1840s did provide a flexible network for those days - the alternative was horse and cart, canal boat or walking.The existing system provides a flexible network for commuters,already links in with existing road an public transport systems. Capacity could be increased over 10 years with appropriate thinking..
Our current MPs and the Powers that be really cannot perceive the future and its needs and the decision making process is infested with vested interests from politicians seeking votes to Transport Ministries and Big Business trying to increase their self importance.
HST is less relevant than a high speed horse and cart. We already have those, they are called motor cars. There is infinite scope for improvement and they provide the flexibility and individuality that people need.
Stand back and think about Birmingham. It needs to be downsized, the best parts retained and the worst converted back to green fields. There is ample scope and need to develop the economies of the East Coast and Scotland. Birmingham is and has always been a transport and industrial bottleneck. That is why the motorway system is designed to avoid it.
A high speed train link to Birmingham, at best would have no economic effect and at worst would prolong an economic disaster.
Ask yourself, how many times in your life have you been to Birmingham? Do you have a compelling need to go there now.Do you really want to go there at 200MPH.
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Natalie Rizzi
commented
spend teh money on high speed broadband instead
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Patrick D
commented
We needed high speed trains in the 60s. Now it is too late: the world has moved on by the time this would be in service, we would no longer need it. The future is local, carbon-neutral and internet-based. We can ill afford this vanity project either as a nation or as users of the service.
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JB
commented
It will cost a colossal amount of money (even without the inevitable overruns) and the benefits are tenuous at best estimated over a period of 60 years! There will be huge destruction to an area of outstanding natural beauty and whole villages will be affected. There is already a perfectly good line between Birmingham and London.
Closing the north south divide is an admirable objective and therefore couldn't the project be approached the other way round and the lines between Scotland and the North and Birmingham built first? This would put some money into those economies that need it most at the moment. The lines do not appear to create as much disruption to local communities or the environment and means that the benefits of the line can be properly tested before building the destructive London Birmingham line.
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Bill F
commented
The government has cut back on education, armed forces, policing, council budgets and yesterday announced it wants to cut hospital beds by 10% to pay for the care of dementia patients yet it still wants to spend £33 billion on a high speed train.High speed 1 running between London and Kent was sold at a loss by this government for £2 billion to a Canadian insurance company. In April this year they borrowed £2 billion more than in April last year. There are far more important and pressing needs for the people of this country than a high speed train.Such projects (e.g. HS1)always overrun on timetable and cost, and if it is allowed to begin we are signing up to an open ended timetable of disruption to areas on the route and a financial black hole.
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GPF
commented
The link is a dreadful waste of public money, especially at a time of major economic distress. The existing railway network is underinvested and when the money is available it should be spent on improving what we already have. There is already sufficient capacity to meet future needs and this can be improved through further investment. HS2 is not something that the public have ever asked for or voted in favour of. It has been dreamt up by politicians and introduced to the public quite suddenly through the back door. It will cause incredible long term disruption to the areas in proximity of the route and will ultimately scar the landscape and create noise pollution in those areas. Apart from the obvious environmental impact of wrecking areas of outstanding natural beauty this project would result in more vehicles on the road during the rail distruption (e.g. when Euston station is rebuilt) and ultimately encourage more unnecessary travelling on half empty trains. Such projects (e.g. HS1)always overrun on timetable and cost, and if it is allowed to begin we are signing up to an open ended timetable of disruption to areas on the route and a financial black hole.
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A Bankes
commented
New Stop HS2 Petition to Government
Visit this site:
http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/353 keep trying if it doesn’t work out first time.Old petition with 49k signatures still valid until Dec 2011 also. Keep signing.
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ANN CRISP
commented
THE LINK IS A COLLOSAL WASTE OF PUBLIC MONEY, IT WILL NOT SERVE THE AREA IT DEVASTATES. MORE JOURNEYS WILL BE REQUIRED IN ORDER TO ACCESS THE TRAINS AND THE PROJECTED NUMBERS OF THOSE WHO WILL BE USING THE SERVICE HAS BEEN OVERESTIMATED. WORKING PRACISES ARE CHANGING JOURNEYS AS SUGGESTED WILL BE LESS NECESSARY. THE DAMAGE TO THE COUNTRYSIDE WILL BE IRREPERABLE
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RobMac
commented
Please can 38 degrees consider opening an Anti-HS2 campaign. In light of the new reports in the newspapers between 20th July- 31st July surely there is now a case. 21 ancient woodlands can't be wrong.
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David Vick
commented
The HS2 consultation is over but that does not mean we sit back and rest.
Over the next few months the data will be analysed.
We are expecting a decision from the Government towards the end of this year.
If the decision is to proceed then the Government will embark upon the Environment Impact Assessment for HS2.
This will be a huge body of work that will likely take us beyond the next General Election.What should you do now? Write to your MP with your views on HS2.
It is very important to get your family and friends around the UK to write to their MPs too. Whether you did the consultation or not, you should write to your MP.Right click this link and open in a new tab. http://www.writetothem.com/
This is a simple web site where you type in your postcode to find your local councillors, your MP and your MEPs.
Click on the links you want and a page is opened as an online email for you to complete and send.
You then will receive a verification email for you to confirm your wishes to send the letter.Quick and very effective.
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david xerri
commented
Why build. Basically this rail link is not needed for it's end purpose. Will the trains make any money. no! In a time when were all being told to use less energy the good old government goes and builds a Train that will force the price of electricity up so the public will end up paying and HS2's owners will become very rich. Will electricity be subsidised for the train?
Why not modernise the existing line. The existing line is established.
The damage and wholesale destruction of lives is unacceptable birds, bats, insects, humans are all part of the world and there lives should not be taken away by a greedy few hiding behind a false agenda. -
Stan Mason
commented
At £32 billion HS2 is flawed in both business and environmental cases. The forecast passnger numbera are over stated by 60% based on independent analysis, and HS2 will contribute to carbon emissions. Alternative, much less expensive ways are available to achieve increased capacity -the government's own proposal RP2 -is one of them, but the dept for Transport Minister Philip Hammond has chosen to ignore it, preferring to spend £200million of our money so far on HS2 publicity.
Write to your MP and say you want HS2 stopped, with money saved being invested in health and social services 9so as people won't die wating the 18 weeks for treatment), and in policing and homeland security to proect us all. -
RobMac
commented
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RobMac
commented
Can we start any more campaigning against HS2, in light of the news articles after the consultation ?? I am concerned the pressure needs to be kept up. I think more people who are not local to the HS2 route need to get involved.
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A Bankes
commented
Please continue to sign the STOP HS2 Petition website visit- http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/stop-hs2/sign.html. 100,000 objection signatures needed to have this debated in Parliment by Dec 2011. Continue to send letters to your MP/'s objecting to HS2, tell everyone you know it will cost them wherever they live in the UK.
