Pause HS2 reset until you are confident it can be delivered, NAO tells ministers
I wonder if they said anything similar about the Lower Thames Crossing motorway, which is more expensive per mile than the HS2.
"Constructing HS2 from London to Birmingham, as well as the now abandoned onward legs to Leeds and Manchester, was initially estimated to cost £32.7bn at 2011 prices. The latest cost estimate is roughly double the figure estimated in 2020"
Pause HS2 reset until you are confident it can be delivered, NAO tells ministers
Deep below London, HS2’s twin tunnels advance towards Euston station
"According to HS2, both TBMs are currently progressing at speeds of up to 150 metres per week as they carve their way through the London clay and head towards passing under residential neighbourhoods. As of a couple of days ago, TBM Madeline was starting to pass under the Grand Union Canal near Scrubbs Lane, with TBM Karen is about 100 metres behind."
Illinois High Speed Railway Commission Gets Work Started
"IHSRC has begun initial design work for a high-speed line linking St. Louis and Chicago...The study provides a chance for the public to weigh in and say that only high-speed rail will do. This means building an electrified line, with no grade crossings, that allows speeds of 186 mph or faster, and achieves a trip time fast enough for real advantages and appeal."
https://www.hsrail.org/blog/illinois-high-speed-railway-commission-gets-work-started/
How to Improve Domestic High-Speed Rail Project Delivery
A study from NYU with five recommendations to expedite these projects:
* Long-term funding and staffing at the federal level
* Adopt technical standards set by the USDOT
* Stronger ties among universities and industry
* Invest in staff to develop and manage well-defined projects
* Separate the planning process from environmental reviews.
A very pessimistic take on all the new rail line investments announced this week.
"I expect the money to, in 10 years, be barely visible as intercity rail improvement – just enough that aggrieved defenders will point to some half-built line or to a line where the program reduced trip times by 15 minutes for billions of dollars, but not enough to make a difference to intercity rail demand."
The United States Learned Little from Obama-Era Rail Investment