Some reactions to the HS2 consultation announcements:
CPRE – “Charity labels new High Speed 2 consultation a train wreck”
“…In France a recent law requires genuine public debate throughout the whole process of planning new lines, a system that is fit for the 21st century [3]. But in Britain we are stuck with something that belongs in the Victorian era: a take it or leave it consultation into a single route option, which the Government has already made up its mind to favour. This will be followed by a parliamentary petitioning procedure that has changed little since the days of 19th century railway barons…”
Councils oppose high-speed rail route
“A joint statement issued by the councils – including Buckinghamshire CC, Hillingdon LBC and several districts – said: ‘The authorities along the route have come together to oppose the proposals for high speed rail as they are currently proposed.”
Philip Hammond’s statement on the consultation:
“I believe that a national high speed rail network from London to Birmingham, with onward legs to Leeds and Manchester, could transform Britain’s competitiveness as profoundly as the coming of the railways in the 19th century.”
And what Hammond thinks about opposition from Coventry city council:
“Coventry would have backed it, had the proposal been to stop at Coventry station.
The Taxpayers Alliance highlights the costs
“The cost to taxpayers of just the first stage of the HS2 project is formidable. The Government expect the first stage from London to Birmingham to cost £17 billion and the full project around £30 billion: £17 billion is equivalent to well over £600 per family. The full £30 billion project will be well over £1,000 per family.”
PS Please check the maps on the Department for Transport site – some of these have changed since December.
I also found the nonsense head line that ‘half the people(‘as though it was the country,) ‘voted for HS2’.When actually they asked only2037 people probably just dashing to work somewhere not affected by the line so dont know about it
anyway 9% against and 40% were neutral or didnt know.Wonder what question thet asked?
how many people have you asked ? and where do they live ?
I see that the councils opposed to HS2 were not invited to the event in Birmingham.
A statement from the Bucks authorities said they were “disgusted”.
It read: “The Government has said that this public consultation is genuine and that it is open to hearing all views.
“However, whilst the event launching the consultation will include representatives from the rail industry and construction companies, it appears that few if any representatives of the areas through which the line passes have been invited.
“For this public consultation to have any credibility it must be genuinely open and inclusive of all views.
“None of our elected representatives have been given the chance to attend this major, all ticket event. This is not a good start.”