FACTS AND MYTHS

Myth 1:   HS2 is ‘green’ – it’s part of the low carbon economy

Untrue: even HS2 Ltd (the company set up by the Government to consider the case for high-speed rail between London and Scotland) say it doesn’t reduce CO₂ emissions (and the way they do their sums gives an underestimate); 360km/h trains use three times the power of 200km/h trains 

Myth 2:   HS2 will deliver wider economic regional benefits and more jobs

Untrue: The Department for Transport and HS2 Ltd do say local transport improves (worth £3.6bn) but this is from freed existing capacity not high speed connections (worth just £8m/a say HS2Ltd); the 10,000 construction jobs would be a temporary migrant workforce (like HS1)

Myth 3:    HS2 is a sound investment – over £2 benefit for £1 cost (Net Benefit Ratio=2.7)

Untrue: commercially it loses money (£25.5bn costs, less £15bn fares) and depends on non-priced time-saving benefits (that are overestimated): all driven by huge projected increase in demand (267%).

Time spent on trains is not all wasted, as HS2 Ltd assume, so the real time-saving benefits are much smaller.

Real NBR will be lucky to reach 1

Myth 4:    Only a new railway solves the rail capacity problem

Untrue: can get 65% extra capacity with just extra rolling stock on WCML and there is massive potential on Chiltern.

Also DfT’s own alternative to HS2 (Rail Package 2) de-bottlenecks existing WCML, delivering capacity by running more trains (for just £2bn and a better (3.63) NBR).  And everything can be done incrementally - not relying on long-term forecasts. 

Myth 5:    HS2 will kill domestic air travel

Untrue: Domestic air services have been growing between towns and cities with poor direct surface connections. HSR will not directly connect such places.  Domestic air traffic for London has been declining. HSR will make little difference, either in the first phase or subsequently. Even with high speed rail, journeys beyond London will take too long to challenge flight.

Myth 6:   UK lacks a fast national railway network

Untrue: UK – unlike Europe – already has one. UK has the fastest conventional inter-city services in the world.

Learn more by clicking on to one of the links below

 www.hs2.org.uk

 www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/highspeedrail/

 www.hs2actionalliance.org

SPENDING CHOICES

Estimated costs for HS2 vary between £20billion and £60billion – and we know which is more likely.

So what could we spend our money on?

Schools – many schools have been told that their building or repair programmes have been cancelled because of economic cutbacks, yet £60billion is being spent on a white elephant.

NHS – how many lives could be saved if some of that £60billion went into paying, for example, for new cancer drugs?

Police – wouldn’t you rather see bobbies on the beat than save half an hour on the train from Birmingham to London?

Transport Infrastructure – a high-speed rail system could be attained by updating and improving existing lines at a fraction of the cost.

An excellent discussion paper has been produced by HS2 Action Alliance; please click on the link below

www.hs2actionalliance.org/powercms//files/cms_files/A%20case%20for%20alternatives%20to%20HS2%20July%202010(1).pdf)