Alt. Universe speculation - no WCRM

[HSTEd]

Well, I have always thought this is an interesting idea that would be fun to play around with.

Say that the West Coast Route Modernisation project was not pursued in anything like its overly ambitious historical form, but instead an LGV (use the 300km/h LGV Nord for comparison) was built from a reconstructed Euston to Birmingham with a connection near Birmingham International Airport.

Where would we be today?
I think Eurostar-esque TGV sets should be able to manage current timings to most West Coast destinations (beyond Birmingham anyway) even with BR-era speed restrictions further up the route.

(Ironically based on the cost of HS1, and HS2-1 in inflation adjusted pounds it comes out far cheaper than the WCRM).

 

[NotATrainspott]

Well, I have always thought this is an interesting idea that would be fun to play around with.

Say that the West Coast Route Modernisation project was not pursued in anything like its overly ambitious historical form, but instead an LGV (use the 300km/h LGV Nord for comparison) was built from a reconstructed Euston to Birmingham with a connection near Birmingham International Airport.

Where would we be today?
I think Eurostar-esque TGV sets should be able to manage current timings to most West Coast destinations (beyond Birmingham anyway) even with BR-era speed restrictions further up the route.

(Ironically based on the cost of HS1, and HS2-1 in inflation adjusted pounds it comes out far cheaper than the WCRM).

I would imagine we would not really see a scheme significantly different to HS2. There hasn't been an enormous amount of change of anything in particular - 18tph operation would have been known to be a long-term possibility so the same number of platforms built to the same basic standards would have been needed at Euston, Crossrail has been in the planning stages for so long that running via Old Oak Common and the NNML in a tunnel would have been logical as well and taking up the approximate alignment of the Great Central and other closed railways would have been obvious. As a result, the scheme would probably be so similar that it would take approximately the same amount of time to complete, so in all likelihood it would only be opening around now anyway (HS2 Ltd founded in 2009, Phase 1 to open in 2026-2027 so 17-18 years) if it had been started around the time of privatisation.

 

[Blamethrower]

For that to have happened, the ruling party required someone with the knowledge and inclination to invoke it. No surprise it didn't as almost all ministers have no experience in the area which they are supposed to govern.

Step forward Andrew Adonis (someone who actually knows and likes railways/transport in general) and lo and behold, we have a high speed rail project. But of course after the WCML upgrade but that needed to happen anyway