this post was submitted on 08 Sep 2023
228 points (94.2% liked)
Asklemmy
43963 readers
1231 users here now
A loosely moderated place to ask open-ended questions
Search asklemmy ๐
If your post meets the following criteria, it's welcome here!
- Open-ended question
- Not offensive: at this point, we do not have the bandwidth to moderate overtly political discussions. Assume best intent and be excellent to each other.
- Not regarding using or support for Lemmy: context, see the list of support communities and tools for finding communities below
- Not ad nauseam inducing: please make sure it is a question that would be new to most members
- An actual topic of discussion
Looking for support?
Looking for a community?
- Lemmyverse: community search
- sub.rehab: maps old subreddits to fediverse options, marks official as such
- [email protected]: a community for finding communities
~Icon~ ~by~ ~@Double_[email protected]~
founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
Look at HS2 in Britain and how people are against the cost for higher speed options, or California HSR. I'm all for it, it should absolutely be done, but getting taxpayers to see 10 years into the future is difficult.
Brits are opposing HS2 simply because they are NIMBYies and oppose everything.
Not entirely accurate. There's a lot of support for HS2 in the North as it would greatly improve the infrastructure - but it's increasingly obvious that HS2 will only be built out as far as is politically beneficial for the government so the project will deliver high speed rail in the south then be abandoned due to massive costs.
South England will reap the benefits (again) paid for by the tax money of all.
I'm not sure that it is really paid "by all". London brings in 25% of all UK taxes while having only 13% of the population. Londoners are paying twice as much as everyone else and yet everyone else complains about "South England/London reaping the benefits". Maybe try to fund something without our help for once? Or at least say thanks.
You're welcome for all the commuters that need to be able to get in to London via our abysmal infrastructure to maintain its prominent position.
That's because HS2 is a totally flawed, Ill thought out, over budget and badly managed boondoggle - just like everything in the UK rail system since the Beeching cuts in the 60's. If it was properly run, well thought out - and actually made a significant difference in time (not approximately 15 minutes from Piccadilly to Euston), we'd support it.
I agree with all of that, but the thing is that faster journey times shouldn't be the main selling point of HS2 in the first place; it'll relieve capacity of the groaningly overused West Coast Mainline, allowing more freight and cheaper short journeys.
If it's properly managed.
Which it won't be.