[Cyclist]

Having scrapped anything that might have been actually useful in HS2, and claimed the credit for a late and over budget Crossrail, our Prime Suspect is now after another project that can overrun in both time and money, and, possibly, get scrapped.

Prime minister Boris Johnson has said that the government should be “getting on with” building Crossrail 2.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Elizabeth line – which was also attended by the Queen herself – Johnson said: “The real thing for us now is to think about Crossrail 2, the old Chelsea-Hackney line.

“That is going to be transformative again. All the problems of commuters coming into Waterloo getting up to north London, you can fix that with another Crossrail. I think we should be getting on with that.”

The long-proposed Crossrail 2 would run south-west to north-east through London, from Clapham Junction to Seven Sisters. It is also hoped that, like the Elizabeth line, it could continue outside of the city, extending into Sussex on the south west end and Hertfordshire on the northern end...

https://www.newcivilengineer.com/latest ... 8-05-2022/

Plus, of course, announcing another major infrastructure project for London and the South right after screwing over Sheffield, Manchester and Leeds, won't go down too well in the aforementioned cities and their hinterlands.

Personally, I can see the need for something like this, but how will it be viewed by the inhabitants of that great grey wasteland outside of the M25?

[Andy McDandy]

Who would want it? I can't see many commuters from the Thames valley being that keen to visit predominantly residential north/north east London. Maybe if Fulham are playing Leyton Orient. And if you thought that ploughing a line through the Chilterns was hard work, try dealing with pretty much every property owner in north London.

[Boiler]

I'm looking at RailMap Online and am struggling to find a historic line that went from Chelsea to Hackney.

[mattomac]

Isn’t Crossrail 2 the one that heads through Wimbledon and Kingston. I was living in Wimbledon when it got announced, bye bye Stephen Hammond.

Irony it would be better for Kingston, then again we’ve had our services cut so you’d question the demand.

My only excitement would being able to get to Ally Pally for the darts and snooker easier.

[davidjay]

It's so typically Johnson; "Come on chaps, let's crack on. Take no notice of the Moaning Minnies and the doomsayers, just roll up your sleeves and get this thing done."

[Cyclist]

HS2 gets a bit more chopped off

The Department for Transport (DfT) has scrapped a 13-mile stretch of the proposed HS2 route.

HS2 minister Andrew Stephenson confirmed the Golborne Link will be removed from the HS2 phase 2b bill, connecting Crewe and Manchester.

The 13-mile link would have seen trains taken off the main route before Manchester and connected to the West Coast Main Line (WCML) near Wigan to continue the journey to Glasgow. The intention was to improve connectivity and journey times to Scotland, and allow greater capacity for freight on the WCML...

https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/hs2/ ... 7-06-2022/

This world-beating high speed project seems to be shrinking faster than Johnson's popularity.

[Andy McDandy]

"It would have been great, if only it wasn't for the [fill in group of choice]" is going to be their one size fits all excuse.

[Boiler]

HS2 gets a bit more chopped off

The Department for Transport (DfT) has scrapped a 13-mile stretch of the proposed HS2 route.

HS2 minister Andrew Stephenson confirmed the Golborne Link will be removed from the HS2 phase 2b bill, connecting Crewe and Manchester.

The 13-mile link would have seen trains taken off the main route before Manchester and connected to the West Coast Main Line (WCML) near Wigan to continue the journey to Glasgow. The intention was to improve connectivity and journey times to Scotland, and allow greater capacity for freight on the WCML...

https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/hs2/ ... 7-06-2022/

This world-beating high speed project seems to be shrinking faster than Johnson's popularity.

Has anybody produced a map of HS2 as proposed compared to HS2 as currently projected?

[Nigredo]

I'd like to see it if it exists, as currently all it will accomplish is making Birmingham a commuter suburb of London.

[Andy McDandy]

Ah, like Rugby.

[Boiler]

When electrification reached Peterborough it became even more the home for London Overspill (the reason it was designated a New Town) and suddenly it became a dormitory.

And, to quote the 45th, "they didn't send their best people".

[Tubby Isaacs]

I'd like to see it if it exists, as currently all it will accomplish is making Birmingham a commuter suburb of London.

Birmingham's got about a million people. It's not going to turn into Sevenoaks.

But it's a bizarre decision. to cancel the Golborne Link. If I were a cynical man I'd say the purpose was to free up some notional money from a short term budget, and/or do a good turn to Graham Brady who had a bee in his bonnet about it going through his constituency.

I can't see how they can avoid building some sort of link, without depriving places north of Manchester of HS2 benefits. There are apparently alternatives, though these go through Brady's constituency too. It'll be some time before it has to be built, so maybe Brady gets to run in 2024 as the man who stopped the appalling carnage that is a pair of train tracks running through his constituency.

[Boiler]

I can't see how they can avoid building some sort of link, without depriving places north of Manchester of HS2 benefits. There are apparently alternatives, though these go through Brady's constituency too. It'll be some time before it has to be built, so maybe Brady gets to run in 2024 as the man who stopped the appalling carnage that is a pair of train tracks running through his constituency.

I wonder if there is any way of determining how much damage a two-track railway (I assume it'll be just two?) with occasional trains on it does compared to a three/four lane motorway with a continual hum of vehicles upon it?

[Tubby Isaacs]

I wonder if there is any way of determining how much damage a two-track railway (I assume it'll be just two?) with occasional trains on it does compared to a three/four lane motorway with a continual hum of vehicles upon it?

There are some good photos floating about of HS1 alongside a motorway, but can't find one now frustratingly. These rather make the point about rail v road rather well.

This is dispiriting.

[Bones McCoy]

My prediction: "Terminating at Kilburn High Road" gets closer every week.

[Yug]

Why does this news not surprise me?

A major overhaul of the way Britain's railways are managed has been delayed, Transport Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan has announced.

The plan - including the creation of a new public body, Great British Railways (GBR) - will not be brought before Parliament until May at the earliest.

She admitted this meant GBR was unlikely to be fully in place by early 2024, as had been hoped...


https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-63313823

Johnson's legacy seems to be falling apart quicker than a day-old Datsun Sunny.

[Yug]

I thought it was the king of Thailand who owned all the white elephants in much the same way as our monarch owns all the swans. Well, here's a very expensive white elephant he won't be putting in his zoo.

Companies preparing to bid for work on HS2 are considering walking away from the project, as Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove confirmed it could face further cutbacks.

Mr Gove told Times Radio that the project’s budget was being reviewed for potential cuts, as the Government looks to raise £50bn through spending cuts and tax rises...

https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/hs2-c ... in-1943482

[Yug]

Reduce overheads to maximise profits - the capitalist mantra

Avanti West Coast has warned it could cancel "a large number" of services on Saturday.

The firm said it was due to high staff shortages and encouraged commuters to travel on Friday or Sunday instead, or claim a refund.

The situation has been exacerbated by recent strikes, prompting the rescheduling of annual leave and training.

Avanti said it was "sorry for the frustration and inconvenience".*

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-64425339

It obviously hasn't occurred to the bosses of Avanti West Coast that if they employed somewhere near the number of staff needed to run their advertised services they wouldn't have to rely on staff wanting overtime to fill in the gaps, and they wouldn't be paying large amounts in refunds and compensation, nor would they have all these acres of bad publicity.

But yeah. Staff costs money that would be better off in the shareholders pockets.




*They apologise for the inconvenience. Marvin *would* be pleased.

[Andy McDandy]

I've recently noticed hoardings on the M6 and M5 through Birmingham saying (I paraphrase somewhat) "Stuck in rush hour traffic? Have you considered getting up earlier, you lazy bastard?". Sort of from the same place.

[Yug]

A while back I predicted that HS2 wouldn't get much further north than Crewe. At this rate it won't even connect central London with Birmingham.

The government is set to announce that construction of certain sections of HS2 will be delayed to save money, the BBC understands.

It is thought the delay will primarily affect sections from Manchester to Crewe and Birmingham to Crewe.

But sources have also indicated that some of the design teams working on the Euston end of the line may be affected.

Contractors are looking at whether they need to redeploy staff working on that site...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64901985