PacificOcean
Unhinged User
T & P said:
Well if it cost £5 billion to build a short section from Kent to London I can't see a country wide high speed rail network being very likely.
First Eurostar on its way to St. Pancras
- Thread starter T & P
- Start date
Well if it cost £5 billion to build a short section from Kent to London I can't see a country wide high speed rail network being very likely.
disownedspirit
New Member
i think the problem was it needed a completely new track cos of all the commuter trainsPacificOcean said:
where as other lines could just be upgraded
hang on though they still have to go into towns don't they
hmmm
i think im talking rubbish
PacificOcean
Unhinged User
Isambard said:
How do they fund it?
oneflewover
Following "The Tigers"
Isambard said:
A lack of nimbys ?
T & P
|-o-| (-o-) |-o-|
I know Spain has considerably more open space than much of the South East of England, but even though it is far less wealthy than the UK they're still managing to build considerable amounts of high speed line- and the price of travel is a lot cheaper too.
There have been various studies that suggest that for every Pound spent in a high speed modern railway line the country generates up to £2.50 back in revenue through increased business and tourism. Even if the initial cost is massive the country would benefit immensely from a high speed line connecting London and the existing high speed line to the Continent with the big cities up North and Scotland.
There have been various studies that suggest that for every Pound spent in a high speed modern railway line the country generates up to £2.50 back in revenue through increased business and tourism. Even if the initial cost is massive the country would benefit immensely from a high speed line connecting London and the existing high speed line to the Continent with the big cities up North and Scotland.
roryer
道可道非常道，名可名非常名
ATOMIC SUPLEX said:
Monmatre's not a bad place to spend a weekend with a lover, but alcohol is way too expensive. The area around Hotel de Ville has a couple of Irish bars where you can afford to get drunk during happy hour, but it seems a bit counter-intuitive to go all the way to Paris to get wasted in an Irish bar. IMO the only other thing worth going there for is to try out their new public use bicycles.
Strasbourg is definately worth a visit though, and only 2 hours and 20 mins from Paris, on the newly opened 252-mile High Speed line. The way they mix bicycles, trams and people in the car free central area is excellent. I am a great fan of their pedestrian priority zone as opposed to pedestrian only areas.
Although a relatively small town it does have an awesome public transport system, and with a couple of big universities it has the youngest population in France, which means good pubs with bands and reasonable prices.
The line cost almost 5bn Euros to build, and links with other high speed lines to Frankfurt and Zurich.
One reason the cost of the line in the UK was so high is the enourmous amount of tunnelling under London that was required. I hear quite a bit of criticism of the Transport Works Act being too slow and cumbersome, but am no expert.
davesgcr
Reading books
Part of the benefits of the HSL line are the capacity benefits by clearing Eurostar off the section off Waterloo - North Kent via Bromley.
Also allows 10 trains an hour from Kent to St Pancras for domestic use - the new Javelin service.
There seems to be a sort of momentum building up for a HSL to at least Birmingham which would clear off a lot of capacity on the West Coast Main line at the south end - though its nothing more than lobbying at the moment.
The French get lines through by declaring a "scheme of national utility" - then buying off affected individuals. The new TGV EST LINE has been loading very well with average payloads of 80%
Also allows 10 trains an hour from Kent to St Pancras for domestic use - the new Javelin service.
There seems to be a sort of momentum building up for a HSL to at least Birmingham which would clear off a lot of capacity on the West Coast Main line at the south end - though its nothing more than lobbying at the moment.
The French get lines through by declaring a "scheme of national utility" - then buying off affected individuals. The new TGV EST LINE has been loading very well with average payloads of 80%
Cobbles said:
I can almost taste the bile you puke up on any public transport thread.
The new East Midlands rail franchise will mean that people coming in on the first trains can be in Europe for 9AM. IF the UK invested in high speed rail links like there are in Europe, there's no real reason why one couldn't do Edinburgh Gare du Nord to Paris Waverley in a good six hours.
T & P
|-o-| (-o-) |-o-|
Well they might be concerned about the environment for starters... Or prefer the far more pleasant experience of travel by rail. Or hate airports and their ever-present queues and delays...
And of course for those further south in Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool or Birmingham the train would become even more attractive as the travel times would be shorter. Indeed, the difference in travel time door to door between central Manchester and central Paris would be very small indeed.
And of course for those further south in Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool or Birmingham the train would become even more attractive as the travel times would be shorter. Indeed, the difference in travel time door to door between central Manchester and central Paris would be very small indeed.
T & P
|-o-| (-o-) |-o-|
Well you have start somewhere don't you? 
Though sadly I don't think we will see a high speed link north of London for decades.
But if nothing else it is a good investment for the country. I don't know if you have travelled on the Eurostar but there is nothing more depressing than slowing down to comutter train pace and trot along old and noisy tracks the second you arrive in England, in high contrast to the smooth high speed line on the French side.
High speed trains are an excellent advertisement for a country and the introduction of the high speed link to the Channel will on the long term pay itself many times over in increased tourism and business.
Though sadly I don't think we will see a high speed link north of London for decades.But if nothing else it is a good investment for the country. I don't know if you have travelled on the Eurostar but there is nothing more depressing than slowing down to comutter train pace and trot along old and noisy tracks the second you arrive in England, in high contrast to the smooth high speed line on the French side.
High speed trains are an excellent advertisement for a country and the introduction of the high speed link to the Channel will on the long term pay itself many times over in increased tourism and business.
editor said:
Firstly congestion (whether due to increased traffic or demonic fuddling with road width/light sequencing) costs money.
Secondly, because I pay fuel tax, (and vat on the fuel tax) and car tax, and VED and insurance tax on my car insurance and tax to my Local Authority who have a duty to provide infrastructure. Why shouldn't I expect that some of thes taxes might actually be spent on road transport?
The rail network was built in the 19th Century using private capital to make a profit. If we need any more lines then let whoever wants to build them do so using their shareholders money if they think that they are financiallly viable.
ChrisFilter
Like a boss.
My commuter train is gonna start going to St Pancras instead of Kings Cross Thameslink, so easier than Waterloo.. nice.
butterfly child
Well-Known Member
I travel into Waterloo, so Eurostar from Waterloo was v handy.
However, St Pancreas is gorgeous, so am v excited about travelling from there. And it's hardly difficult to get to from Waterloo, an additional 15 minutes at most?
However, St Pancreas is gorgeous, so am v excited about travelling from there. And it's hardly difficult to get to from Waterloo, an additional 15 minutes at most?
PacificOcean
Unhinged User
butterfly child said:
roryer
道可道非常道，名可名非常名
Ditto roads... toll roads only and built only for profit, athough even then I'll be the first NIMBY, in fact I object to roads for motorised traffic being anywhere especially in my city. Don't I have an inalienable right to not suffer from road noise, pollution, and danger? Not to mention the dedication of large tracts of public space to road transport and the climate change gases all this building of the cars and the infrastructure they run on causes.Cobbles said:
BAN PRIVATE CARS FROM LONDON!!! (and anywhere else that I might ever choose to live)
editor said:
No, however as motorists pay huge swathes of extra tax, there is a reasonable expectation that some of this should find its way back into infrastructure for our cars.
editor said:
Who pays for the environmental damage caused by the energy consumption of the average home (far more generative of so-called greenhouse gases than vehicles)?
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