Here’s an alternative to consider: If the Internet allows for remote working and remote meetings, then what need do we have to shift bodies between London and the North for meetings?
I cannot see how HS2 is going to make things better. Of all the things that are going on in this country at the minute, I haven’t heard businesses going under because they couldn’t travel between London and Birmingham more quickly. It’s a close to £10bn vanity project which will need to be paid for by increasing ticket prices causing people not to be able to afford to travel.
Everyone always forgets Shinkansen was unpopular, over budget and dealyed.
>One major difference between the Japanese and British government is that the Japanese had the political willpower and stamina to persevere with the project, ignoring critics. In fact, criticisms were transformed into positives; concerns over Shinkansen’s impact on protected areas of land were flipped on their heads by Kyoto city leaders, who actively lobbied for the train to pass through the ancient city. They argued that such a high-tech machine in an ancient setting adds a ‘global sheen of modernity’
>Japan had the sense to look beyond these short-term criticisms to think of the long-term benefits of the project. 60 years on, the architects of Shinkansen have been proven correct: the train steadily grew into a passenger favourite overtaking aeroplanes and cars. Over the years the number of Shinkansen lines were extended. The train is a resounding success, winning fans across the world as countries worked to develop their own high-speed trains, like in France. Japan has exported its high- speed knowledge to other countries to build their own trains
3 comments
Here’s an alternative to consider: If the Internet allows for remote working and remote meetings, then what need do we have to shift bodies between London and the North for meetings?
I cannot see how HS2 is going to make things better. Of all the things that are going on in this country at the minute, I haven’t heard businesses going under because they couldn’t travel between London and Birmingham more quickly. It’s a close to £10bn vanity project which will need to be paid for by increasing ticket prices causing people not to be able to afford to travel.
Everyone always forgets Shinkansen was unpopular, over budget and dealyed.
>One major difference between the Japanese and British government is that the Japanese had the political willpower and stamina to persevere with the project, ignoring critics. In fact, criticisms were transformed into positives; concerns over Shinkansen’s impact on protected areas of land were flipped on their heads by Kyoto city leaders, who actively lobbied for the train to pass through the ancient city. They argued that such a high-tech machine in an ancient setting adds a ‘global sheen of modernity’
>Japan had the sense to look beyond these short-term criticisms to think of the long-term benefits of the project. 60 years on, the architects of Shinkansen have been proven correct: the train steadily grew into a passenger favourite overtaking aeroplanes and cars. Over the years the number of Shinkansen lines were extended. The train is a resounding success, winning fans across the world as countries worked to develop their own high-speed trains, like in France. Japan has exported its high- speed knowledge to other countries to build their own trains