Unfortunately all the homes in Mexborough are still under threat, this announcement has only kicked certain areas into the long grass, not removing the threat and legal implications permanently.
Generally I'd believe that Starmer could be quoted as being for or against anything, but as you know I follow transport carefully and I can't remember this. I'm assuming it was perhaps a constituency thing, but do you have a link?
By the way, I finally found this on Twitter the other day (the study from 2010, right back when HS2 was first being put together) and genuinely thought about you! Shows how exciting my life is... I'm pretty sure that this was the first government document to ever seriously put forward the idea of high speed rail to anywhere except the continent.
Yes, he spoke against Hs2 in 2017 for certain...I think he actually dodged the vote for the Phase 2a Hybrid bill...he voted in the house a day or so before the bill and a day or so after but seems to have missed the crucial one. This link is interesting https://richardosley.com/2019/11/23/election-daily-doubling-for-keir/ ''NOBODY can argue that Labour’s Sir Keir Starmer has sat back and let it all happen in relation to the hated HS2 rail line. While the party nationally has been enthusiastic about the project, Mr Starmer has opposed it – the title of one of the passages on his latest leaflet. It reads defiantly: “Our country needs improved transport infrastructure but the new HS2 railway is not the answer.” Residents facing 20 years of building work or those pushed out of their homes and businesses no doubt agree.'' His election leaflet said ''Our country needs improved transport infrastructure, but the new Hs2 Railway is not the answer, it is over budget and behind schedule.''
So yeah, just constituency stuff. See also BJ dodging the Heathrow vote. Although I'm not one to defend Starmer, but that article does state that he wasn't even there...
as a Green Party member can’t say i disagree. Capacity will be increased between the existing legs which will improve services but no increased capacity for the north basically means no real improvements are possible particularly using existing tracks. Right from the start the govt promoted the wrong agenda. It was always about capacity but never speed.
Having worked on the Birmingham leg for the last year I have seen the jobs and regeneration created. Still not the best way to spend the money but the changes just means we will see no regeneration no improvements and no jobs. Manchester to Leeds. New tracks across the region. Genuine improvements from Sheffield to Leeds. speeding up of Huddersfield line all would have been better as an alternative package with other improvements instead we get virtually nothing. Replacing the tracks was key without that pretty much everything else is pointless
I know we need to plan. I get that, it would be a disaster not to ...... but to talk about it for ten years, and (with any big project) for it to take decades to actually build it's not good enough. We need to plan it quicker and start and it needs to be operational now not in 30 years. Also, aren't part of the plans for a tram for Leeds? Yes, it's a good idea but WY authority had a lot of work done on it years ago, including compulsory purchase orders, and it all went tits up meaning all that work needs to be done again.
If we were to upgrade / change existing lines, the biggest two issues for me are - Sheffield to Manchester. Its criminal that a 33 mile* journey takes nearly an hour = Capacity as stations - Ever come back from London and been stuck outside Dore because there is no capacity at Sheffield station? They need to add platforms (to that station too, not building a new station out of time). If that means less road space, so be it. Leeds is just the same, platform 17 of course, being the hardest one to get to. Whilst I'm on about this, didn't the closure of Jumble Lane mean additional capacity through Barnsley? Since it's been closed we've had a reduction. (*apparently 33 miles by rail buy source isn't good)
Yes that seems to be the plan, the question is how far down the line & how much money will be wasted before it's scrapped this time.
Really enjoyed reading this thread people making constructive suggestions maybe we just need to stay off football as a topic. Did anyone think the northern phase of hs2 was ever going to get built I honestly thought when the southern section had run over by x amount of billions the northern section would end up similar to what now been proposed just many year's down the line. A conservative government were never going to invest that much money into the north maybe it's best we lance the boil now and accept it, far from a expert on this subject and would be interested in the options of people with more knowledge.
Sheffield to Manchester Leeds to Manchester Sheffield/Leeds to Nottingham All to Bradford Any Yorkshire to Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Liverpool or Newcastle These journeys should take half the time they do. These aren't small towns, they are among the largest cities in the UK. Compare the journey times in the UK to Japan or China and we are in the dark ages. Tokyo->Osaka is 2:18 for 320miles. Leeds->London takes longer and is just over half the distance. Beijing->Shanghai takes 6:30 but is over 800 miles - a comparable journey in UK (London->Dundee) is 480 miles.
There are a lot of improvements that could be made to our local infrastructure that would be more effective than the HS2 spur, which was crippled anyway when Julie Dore insisted it went into the centre of Sheffield. Absolutely gutted for the people of Bradford, I used to travel there regularly late on a Saturday to play ice hockey and it was barmy how difficult it was to get there from Huddersfield via Leeds. Three major conurbations and it took ages to get between them. Same with Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster. If the improved service between Sheffield and Leeds is going via the Bolton line they really need to look at laying track on the TPT to connect us to it as well. It'd be difficult to get through Manvers but there's potentially a route between Old Moor & Manvers lake. This is why the South Yorkshire mayor idea was such a bad deal, One Yorkshire needs to be a priority.
Regarding the HS2 link on BBC Victoria Darbyshire made the Penistone and Stocksbridge MP Miriam Cates look a right donut whether you are for the Leeds to Liverpool link or against it anyone who voted for her wants not to see a doctor but a psychiatrist.
