Let’s put it this way: Any HS2 that is not connected to the HS1 is a stupid idea from the beginning.
Do you really imagine people coming from the EU wanting to drag all their stuff through the f-ing Tube to reach the connecting bullet train to the north? Heck, this is already a pain in the ass with the crappy normal trains in the UK. I once needed to go from Hastings to Cambridge by train, and vividly remember having to walk between Kings Cross and Kings Cross Themselink (and back) with a load of luggage and a handicapped wife.
The HS1-HS2 link would’ve been great, had HS1 been built to terminate at the underground King’s Cross station that never ended up being built. As is it is, it doesn’t really go together nicely. But also the bigger problem is with the immigration and security theatre required to go through the tunnel, meaning you either have to change trains or have all of that at every other station that the trains would call at in the UK, which isn’t really feasible. If we could reduce (or remove) these requirements that would be great but we’ve been moving in the opposite direction.
That said, the main point of HS2 is to move the existing long distance services (which don’t mesh well with slower trains, reducing capacity) off of our existing mainlines, creating a lot of capacity for more local and freight services across the country.
Let’s put it this way: Any HS2 that is not connected to the HS1 is a stupid idea from the beginning.
Do you really imagine people coming from the EU wanting to drag all their stuff through the f-ing Tube to reach the connecting bullet train to the north? Heck, this is already a pain in the ass with the crappy normal trains in the UK. I once needed to go from Hastings to Cambridge by train, and vividly remember having to walk between Kings Cross and Kings Cross Themselink (and back) with a load of luggage and a handicapped wife.
The HS1-HS2 link would’ve been great, had HS1 been built to terminate at the underground King’s Cross station that never ended up being built. As is it is, it doesn’t really go together nicely. But also the bigger problem is with the immigration and security theatre required to go through the tunnel, meaning you either have to change trains or have all of that at every other station that the trains would call at in the UK, which isn’t really feasible. If we could reduce (or remove) these requirements that would be great but we’ve been moving in the opposite direction.
That said, the main point of HS2 is to move the existing long distance services (which don’t mesh well with slower trains, reducing capacity) off of our existing mainlines, creating a lot of capacity for more local and freight services across the country.
Well, maybe the UK will return to civilisation before HS2 is finished…