Envy123
Member
As I have said previously, I'm not certain that HS2 season tickets will be regulated, just as Eurostar season tickets are not regulated (in that they don't exist). When a new market is created, there are no existing customers who need "protecting", unlike when BR was privatised.
That being said, if the long distance WCML service is decimated such that WCML services are no longer suitable for commuting from Crewe / Stoke / Stafford / Coventry / etc, it would not be appropriate for HS2 season tickets from these stations to be unregulated.
People do commute daily from Birmingham to London, though, in the hundreds if not the thousands. That is one set of customers that would need to be "protected".
Also, bearing in mind that HS2 will also allow people in London to feasibly work in other cities, so businesses can base themselves up north and still attract a large labor pool. This does assume non-extortionate fares, though.
HS2 can kickstart spreading the wealth and jobs across England, but if fares aren't extortionate and the new housing is affordable (among other factors).
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