Britain’s next-generation high-speed rail network (HS2) was going to lay 530km of track, offer speeds of up to 225mph, cost around £33bn, and launch in 2026, when it was announced in 2012.
Now in 2026, it’ll cost up to £103bn, be under half the length (225km), slower, and won’t be completed until, potentially, 2043.
It’s gone laughably wrong. Even the government calls it “the world’s most expensive slow-motion car crash”.
Presenters Alex Hudson and Chris Stokel-Walker interview transport expert Adam Tyndall about how a slow-motion car crash is possible on a railway, exactly what’s gone wrong and why a bat tunnel costs £100m (yes, it does relate to HS2).
Elsewhere, how much EU can an EU EU if an EU is in the EU? Brussels is preparing the Chips Act 2.0 for a reported launch on 27 May, as part of the wider Tech Sovereignty Package. They want to double Europe’s global semiconductor market share to 20% by 2030.
Chris is heading to Europe to find out if that’s possible (though we both think we know the answer).
Follow Adam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamtyndall/
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