Our government says it cannot afford to protect the countryside and the towns and to date has promised roughly 150 million to help in flood defences and assistance to flooded commuities. The cost at the moment for HST2 is 50 billion and will surely as these things do by maybe 20 plus billion and the question i am asking myself is WHY.To save half an hour between london and Manchester for well heeled passengers that can afford the surely high fares.To increase capacity make trains longer,manage the system to put more trains on and if necessary lengthen the main line platforms.These ideas have all been floated in the past and nothing has been done.
We all know about climate change and as sure as night follows day this is not going to get any better,indeed unless a whole load of money is spent we are in for a major major flood maybe not for a few years but not far away.The money the dutch nation has spent on flood defences is dwarfed by our tiny amount.Scrap HST2 and start spending big money to protect against the big flood.
With you on this one. I think flood defence is a much more pressing national issue than an ostentatious (and premature) display of supposed prosperity such as HS2. The poor sods besieged on the Somerset levels might have some strong views on this also.
The HS2 project will surely serve to make a handful of very rich people even richer, hence the skewed priorities being displayed.
Every time I see a CGI of the train its on a viaduct. We could say Balls to the train and just keep all these viaducts and build houses on them instead of flood plains. Simples eh? Jim
Lets just say that we get HST2 up and running in 30 years or so.What will happen when buses are replacing trains due to engineering work?Will the buses be green battery powered jobbies that do 50 mph with a following wind ,or the usual old wrecks that top out at 62 mph.
HS2 is just political, only the rich or company paid passengers would be able to afford to use it. It will end up costing 100 BILLION, it always doubles in cost as time goes on, what this country could do with that money is endless. There is no way in the land of pigs puddin that would ever be repaid in investment.
Now that the Home Counties are about to be flooded the tories will wade in with whatever it takes to try and stem the damage - bit late for the other buggers.
I am most surprised the government have not said that the flooding is the fault of people on benefits and the disabled.
simple answer …suspend all oversea,s aid until we get ourselves sorted 
syramax:
simple answer …suspend all oversea,s aid until we get ourselves sorted
+1 but amend to suspend all overseas aid.
I remember 50 years ago at junior school being told to eat all of my dinner because of the poor starving people in Africa … what has happened in the meantime … despots have got rich while their countries have starved.
brados:
HS2 is just political, only the rich or company paid passengers would be able to afford to use it. It will end up costing 100 BILLION, it always doubles in cost as time goes on, what this country could do with that money is endless. There is no way in the land of pigs puddin that would ever be repaid in investment.
Now that the Home Counties are about to be flooded the tories will wade in with whatever it takes to try and stem the damage - bit late for the other buggers.I am most surprised the government have not said that the flooding is the fault of people on benefits and the disabled.
HS2 is jobs for the boys, the bloke who was in charge of the expensive and failed NHS computer systems has been put in charge of HST
Compared to Japan and it’s Bullet trains and the TGV in France,the UK is twenty years behind the times,still using Victorian lines and routes.
The French built the TGV lines first then paid out the compensation by compulsory purchase order.
You can hardly hear or see it as it passes,being so fast.Gone by in a second.
We of over running engineering works.Why did the work crew not finish the task.Drinking tea and smoking all night?
Anybody living in a flood area,will find it hard to sell their properties or sell for a bargain price.
Maybe one day they will build houses on stilts,as they do in the Far East.
The living area starts on the first floor not the ground floor.
syramax:
simple answer …suspend all oversea,s aid until we get ourselves sorted
