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Is HS2 a disastrous decision for the nation?
ACCORDING to High
Speed UK (HSUK) the MPs decision to overwhelmingly vote in favour of the HS2
rail link, that took place on 24 March 2016, leaves the United Kingdom with:-
"a hopeless mess."
MPs in the House of Commons voted in favour of Phase 1 of the project, which
will run between London and Birmingham. The legislation will now go to the House
of Lords.
High Speed UK (HSUK) experts, Colin Elliff and Quentin Macdonald, founders
said:- "It is deeply worrying that only 1 option for a high speed rail
line has ever been presented to Parliament. There is no evidence that HS2,
either with or without HS3, has ever been designed as a national network and
there has been no consideration as to how the line will operate. It beggars
belief that MPs can blithely nod through a scheme that has been so ill informed
from the outset. Although the task of designing a fully integrated national rail
network is a highly technical matter, it is relatively simple to demonstrate
HSUK's overwhelming technical superiority as a national railway network. HS2 Ltd
knows all about the superior HSUK alternative, but continues to pursue its own
discredited proposals. This constitutes fundamental abuse of due process. As a
result of ignoring Government policy on transport, regional development, the
environment and land use, the resulting HS2 design is a hopeless mess. It is
impossible for HS2 to work as an efficient national network and there are
countless failures to the designs put forward by HS2 which in our view render it
utterly unfit for purpose. It seems abundantly clear that there has been a
catastrophic failure in the processes underpinning the Government's HS2 project
and it is necessary to determine exactly how and why the HS2 project has gone so
badly wrong."
HSUK's campaign coordinator, Jack Irvine added:- "The last week has
demonstrated beyond doubt that this government, and Chancellor George Osborne in
particular, finds it challenging to analyse complex political and financial
situations, although it is encouraging that he changes his mind with alacrity,
especially when he sees disaster looming. I have no doubt the UK Parliament have
embarked on a project that will have disastrous consequences, both financially
and from an infrastructure point of view. The electorate should also note that
MPs, desperate to get away for their Easter break, took a mere 37 minutes to
discuss what will almost certainly be the biggest project of this century.
Lastly, the chief flaw in Mr Osborne's skewed logic is that faster rail links
will indeed have a major effect on the economy; the London economy! Nobody in
the City I know is desperate to get to the north of England or Scotland any
quicker, however Northern business people will simply find London a more
attractive destination to do business and benefit the already wildly successful
economy. That rather blows Osborne's Northern Powerhouse rationale for HS2 out
of the water."
(HSUK) experts, Colin Elliff and Quentin Macdonald, both said:-
"Worryingly there is no evidence that HS2, either with or without HS3, has ever
been designed as a national network. There is also no evidence that any
responsible authority Government, HS2 Ltd or Network Rail has considered how the
entire national network will operate, with HS2 and HS3 in place, to deliver the
required capacity and connectivity. Looking at the current plans, there are a
plethora of concerns that we need to be aware of at this crucial stage. For
instance, HS2's stations are few in number and many major UK Cities will be
bypassed. In addition to that, there are no credible proposals to explain how
disconnected stations will be linked to surrounding communities and there is no
effective co-ordination between HS2 and any future 'HS3' transpennine routes!
All these indicators point to an alarming picture whereby the intervention of
HS2 would seem to impair overall connectivity rather than enhance it. It is
highly concerning that the Department for Transport's overview of the case for
HS2 Phase 1 and the environmental impact fails to acknowledge any of these
negative issues that will directly affect the constituencies of many of the MPs
who will be voting on the HS2 Bill."
HSUK has been designed from the outset as a fully integrated national network.
It offers:-
► Direct high speed links between all of the UK's principal regional Cities.
► Direct links from these Cities to Heathrow (and Gatwick), and other principal
regional airports.
► An integral transpennine link meeting all aspects of the Northern Powerhouse
remit.
► A 4 track spine route aligned via the M1 corridor.
► Complete avoidance of the Chilterns AONB, and other sensitive areas.
► Potential transport sector CO2 reductions estimated at 600Mt, over 40 years.
The spokesperson for HSUK added:- "Although the task of designing a fully
integrated national rail network is a highly technical matter, it is a
relatively simple matter to demonstrate HSUK's overwhelming technical
superiority as a national railway network. There are many failures to the
designs put forward by HS2 which in our view render it utterly unfit for purpose
as a national railway network. They also call into question most if not all of
the justifications for HS2, upon which MPs will be basing their voting
decisions. It seems abundantly clear that there has been a catastrophic failure
in the processes underpinning the Government's HS2 project and it is necessary
to determine exactly how and why the HS2 project has gone so badly wrong."
For more information on HSUK, please visit:-
HighSpeedUK.Co.UK.
What do you our readers think? Please email us your views to:-
news24@southportreporter.com.
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