Another 20 years of weekend engineering works

[Miss Demeanour]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8221540.stm

Network Rail has proposed a new ?34bn  high-speed railway line linking Scotland and London by 2030.

The line will serve Birmingham and Manchester, getting passengers from Glasgow to London in just two hours and 16 minutes, the rail firm said.

The proposed new High Speed 2 line will still need to be approved by the government, which is conducting its own rail network review.

The new line would become the country's second high-speed rail link after the line that runs from London St Pancras to the Channel Tunnel, run by the

Network Rail's proposed new line linking Glasgow and Edinburgh with London, on which trains could travel as fast as 200mph, will also serve

Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham.

Rail passengers would also be able to get to Liverpool in one hour and 23 minutes, from two hours and eight minutes now.

Network Rail, the company that runs Britain's rail infrastructure, said the new line would require more than 1,500 miles of rail, sleepers and ballast, as well as 138 bridges over roads and current railway lines.



Now if this was another country proposing such a scheme you have have some level of confidence that it would be a good idea .....however why is it I can only see delays, increased fares, disruption and inadequate technology 

[Snoopy]

Rail passengers would also be able to get to Liverpool in one hour and 23 minutes, from two hours and eight minutes now.

Why would anyone want to?

Get FROM Liverpool faster I could understand but ............

[Miss Demeanour]

Because we will all be visiting Nick's newly opened sanctuary and spa 

[Nick]

I will be offering massage 

[Miss Demeanour]

You could use the Paintpod for spray tanning 

[Uncle Mort]

Because we will all be visiting Nick's newly opened sanctuary and spa 

Will it have pictures of pebbles on the walls.

[Nick]

No it will have real pebbles on the walls. More ecological like 

[Miss Demeanour]

In a sort of ethnic pebbledashing kind of way 

[Nick]

No pebbles and some bits of old Blu Tak.

[Pastis]

As for the OP; three little letters... TGV

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TGV

Why didn't we do this years ago? 

[Nick]

I went to Paris on the train once. We trundled through Sarf london and most of Kent, entered the tunnel and then accelerated to about 180 mph. The guard announced, in a French accent and somewhat sarcastically, 'Welcome to France.'

[Pastis]

I've done the very same; sickening innit? 

[Nick]

And we invented fooking trains 

The Spanish Ave trains are likewise fantastic

http://www.raileurope.co.uk/Default.aspx?tabid=1912
 

[Pastis]

Yep, looks that way. Ironic too for a country renowned for ma?ana.

I went down to Tours in the Loire valley a couple of years ago using the TGV; amazingly good value for ?76 return!

[Darwins Selection]

And we invented fooking trains 

If only we had kept Mr Kipling out of the industry.