Technology0 min ago
High Speed 2 Is Go.....
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I'm an advocate of the extra capacity that HS2 would bring to the rail network; however now seems an odd time to press the "go" button.
with many people working from home, companies are actively re-assessing their working practices, staffing levels and premises provision for possible reorganisation and "right sizing" once a degree of normality returns. my company is one of these. once life begins to return to normal, it may well be a different normal that doesn't require staff to travel to offices, to meetings, etc.
it would probably have made better sense to wait and see what normal looks like later in the year; it may be that the case for extra capacity isn't there any more, n'est-ce-pas?
I'm an advocate of the extra capacity that HS2 would bring to the rail network; however now seems an odd time to press the "go" button.
with many people working from home, companies are actively re-assessing their working practices, staffing levels and premises provision for possible reorganisation and "right sizing" once a degree of normality returns. my company is one of these. once life begins to return to normal, it may well be a different normal that doesn't require staff to travel to offices, to meetings, etc.
it would probably have made better sense to wait and see what normal looks like later in the year; it may be that the case for extra capacity isn't there any more, n'est-ce-pas?
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// Investment in infrastructure is a classic move during recessions,//
it is, but circumstances change. the LTPB 5 year plan for the underground in the 1930s was a case in point. although a lot of it went ahead, many projects were deferred because of the war, and then abandoned after it because social changes post-war rendered them unnecessary.
it is, but circumstances change. the LTPB 5 year plan for the underground in the 1930s was a case in point. although a lot of it went ahead, many projects were deferred because of the war, and then abandoned after it because social changes post-war rendered them unnecessary.
I have discussed this project with my brother-in-law who is a civil engineer and deals with this level of huge infrastructure.
He points out that, once embarked on, there comes a point where it is no longer financially viable to stop the project, it has to continue to fruition, and this is the case with HS2.
In addition, the initial cost forecast is known to treble at least, because of unforeseen circumstances that are revealed on an almost daily basis.
I never agreed with the principle of HS2, based purely on the fact that history shows us that successive governments have been unable to run a national railway system on anything like a successful and profitable basis for the past fifty years, and on that basis, why should any government be allowed to consider planning to build a new railway, given their lamentable failure to run the one they have now.
He points out that, once embarked on, there comes a point where it is no longer financially viable to stop the project, it has to continue to fruition, and this is the case with HS2.
In addition, the initial cost forecast is known to treble at least, because of unforeseen circumstances that are revealed on an almost daily basis.
I never agreed with the principle of HS2, based purely on the fact that history shows us that successive governments have been unable to run a national railway system on anything like a successful and profitable basis for the past fifty years, and on that basis, why should any government be allowed to consider planning to build a new railway, given their lamentable failure to run the one they have now.
I don't think people will stop travelling, that's a genie that can't be put back in the bottle. I think they will be happy to do it by train instead of plane - there are hardly any London-Paris flights any more. And given the choice of driving between Birmingham and London and letting the train take the strain, is there any contest?
from a report in today's guardian:-
The end of business travel
Health fears initially made companies halt work trips; now it is an expense that struggling firms will likely shelve. Strickland says: “Some of those businesses will have disappeared, others have put travel bans in place, and all have discovered the joys of videoconferencing – the lucrative premium cabins on long-haul flights won’t be full for a while. Whether all this is a permanent structural change remains to be seen, but even it is not for ever, it will be a long recovery.”
The end of business travel
Health fears initially made companies halt work trips; now it is an expense that struggling firms will likely shelve. Strickland says: “Some of those businesses will have disappeared, others have put travel bans in place, and all have discovered the joys of videoconferencing – the lucrative premium cabins on long-haul flights won’t be full for a while. Whether all this is a permanent structural change remains to be seen, but even it is not for ever, it will be a long recovery.”
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