Controversial High Speed Rail link to go ahead (From Banbury Cake)
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Controversial High Speed Rail link to go ahead
11:43am Tuesday 10th January 2012 in News
The Government has signalled the go-ahead for the £32 billion HS2 high-speed rail project that will drastically reduce journey times between major UK cities.
In an attempt to appease opponents of the controversial scheme, including some Tory MPs, Transport Secretary Justine Greening announced extra tunnelling for sections of the 140-mile route between London and Birmingham.
The link between the UK's two biggest cities, which passes through picturesque Tory heartlands, will form phase one of the scheme, with a hybrid bill being introduced in Parliament next year.
This first £16.4 billion phase, introducing 225mph trains and cutting London-Birmingham journey times to 49 minutes, would be completed in 2026. A second phase, taking HS2 to Manchester and Leeds in a Y-shaped route, would be completed around 2032/33.
New measures announced by Ms Greening include a 1.4-mile tunnel near Amersham in Buckinghamshire. There will also be a new 2.75-mile tunnel in Ruislip in north-west London.
Other new tunnels, or extensions to already-planned tunnels, will be at Greatworth in Northamptonshire, Turweston in Buckinghamshire, Chipping Warden and Aston le Walls in Northamptonshire, Wendover in Buckinghamshire, and Long Itchington Wood in Warwickshire.
Comments(7)
godzilla
says...
4:13pm Tue 10 Jan 12
Andrew:Oxford
says...
5:11pm Tue 10 Jan 12
Should be quite a scenic view from the carriage too.
The Big Issue
says...
9:47pm Tue 10 Jan 12
Why are the residents of Woodford Halse objecting? Woodford was a railway village until the Great Central closed; Isn't HS2 using some of the trackbed of this pointlessly closed line anyway?
Mark L.
says...
8:59am Wed 11 Jan 12
Andrew:Oxford wrote:Only if you can afford a ticket. I expect the cost will be astronomic, if todays crazy prices are anything to go by. A white elephant for use by suits.
This is going to be great when it opens. Should be quite a scenic view from the carriage too.
King Joke
says...
1:14pm Wed 11 Jan 12
Mark L. wrote:If the suits are using this rather than overpriced, overpowered and overpolluting executive saloon cars then so much the better.
Andrew:Oxford wrote: This is going to be great when it opens. Should be quite a scenic view from the carriage too.Only if you can afford a ticket. I expect the cost will be astronomic, if todays crazy prices are anything to go by. A white elephant for use by suits.
Space will be freed up on the classic network for the rest of us.
Englishman
says...
1:34pm Wed 11 Jan 12
Lord Palmerstone says...
3:34pm Tue 10 Jan 12