HS2

[GwladysPhil]

Going to cost over £100bn now.

Using technology from the late 60,s to essentially get people to London quicker, it's simply outrageous and a literal on the spot cocaine thought from Osbourne to get votes.

FYI, for that cost you could regenerate the entire UK train system to be the best in the world with money left over to re open closed routes.

 

[Daveysgingerlovechild]

Going to cost over £100bn now.

Using technology from the late 60,s to essentially get people to London quicker, it's simply outrageous and a literal on the spot cocaine thought from Osbourne to get votes.

FYI, for that cost you could regenerate the entire UK train system to be the best in the world with money left over to re open closed routes.

I dont really disagree with the principle of more capacity and infrastructure, just as you say is this the best way to do it. For arguments sake, if hs2 is a worthwhile venture, the lack of parallel investment in the regions is shocking.

 

[Disgruntledgoat]

Just move Birmingham 20 minutes closer to London. Be cheaper.

 

[Blue 1]

Going to cost over £100bn now.

Using technology from the late 60,s to essentially get people to London quicker, it's simply outrageous and a literal on the spot cocaine thought from Osbourne to get votes.

FYI, for that cost you could regenerate the entire UK train system to be the best in the world with money left over to re open closed routes.

It's not about getting people to London quicker, it's about capacity.

My brother works in a fairly high position within the railway service and tells me that unfortunately without it the railway system will pretty much grind to a halt.

They have made a colossal pig's ear of it though in terms of timescale and cost, though.

 

[chrismpw]

I bet they haven't even tried sawdust.

 

[chrismpw]

Government specialise in enormous unwanted public projects like these. They select the civil engineering company owned or run by their mate from Eton or whatever public school, then don't bat an eyelid when the price multiplies beyond all reason. I'd be astonished if kickbacks weren't involved.

It's their way of getting our grubby old tax cash into the hands of the deserving wealthy and their shareholders.

 

[Lord Buckethead]

Utter waste of money.

Lots of Tory donating Construction firms getting very rich off it.

 

[Disgruntledgoat]

Government specialise in enormous unwanted public projects like these. They select the civil engineering company owned or run by their mate from Eton or whatever public school, then don't bat an eyelid when the price multiplies beyond all reason. I'd be astonished if kickbacks weren't involved.

It's their way of getting our grubby old tax cash into the hands of the deserving wealthy and their shareholders.

Having worked in the construction sector for a few years allow me to explain. The price increases beyond all reason because the people signing the contract for the government are absolutely useless. If you bid the job at what it would cost to do it propoerly, you wouldn't make it past the first round. So the trick is to bid it basically at 0.5% fee and then, should you win, drive a coach and horses through their terrible specification with claims and variations to make it worth the company's while to do the job rather than shove the cash in the bank.

It's a race to the bottom.

 

[Connor]

Vanity project

 

[Baines' left foot]

Having worked in the construction sector for a few years allow me to explain. The price increases beyond all reason because the people signing the contract for the government are absolutely useless. If you bid the job at what it would cost to do it propoerly, you wouldn't make it past the first round. So the trick is to bid it basically at 0.5% fee and then, should you win, drive a coach and horses through their terrible specification with claims and variations to make it worth the company's while to do the job rather than shove the cash in the bank.

It's a race to the bottom.

I work in construction and this happens all the time.

We give the cheapest contractor the work and then they use any reason to stop work and/or claim additional money because some people haven't done their jobs properly.

 

[Toast]

The Simpsons Monorail episode this reminds me of.

 

[OnlyBlueWillDo]

Biggest waste of cash since we handed a transfer budget to Steve Walsh and that fukwit Koeman.

 

[degsy]

Going to cost over £100bn now.

Using technology from the late 60,s to essentially get people to London quicker, it's simply outrageous and a literal on the spot cocaine thought from Osbourne to get votes.

FYI, for that cost you could regenerate the entire UK train system to be the best in the world with money left over to re open closed routes.

£100B to get you there 20 mins quicker
'Koff.
Took us 2hrs 30mins to Euston in 1966 for the cup final...in a steam 'kin train.
Waste of money.

 

[tsubaki]

Government specialise in enormous unwanted public projects like these. They select the civil engineering company owned or run by their mate from Eton or whatever public school, then don't bat an eyelid when the price multiplies beyond all reason. I'd be astonished if kickbacks weren't involved.

It's their way of getting our grubby old tax cash into the hands of the deserving wealthy and their shareholders.

British government does; other governments manage to do this without problems.

Everything wrong with HS2 though stems from the decision to send it to Birmingham; the first proper domestic HS line (not counting London to the tunnel) had to go to Edinburgh for it to be a measurable success, justifying other routes (although tbh only really London - Manchester would make any real sense, the rest could just be electrified).

 

[-Rob-]

For £100bn investment I'd expect them to come up with a teleportation system that could get me anywhere in the world at the click of my fingers.