HS2 - obsession with high speed

Germany is bigger than UK.  German HS trains run at up to 175 MPH - why do ours need to go faster?

France is bigger than the UK and their High Speed trains run at up to 190 MPH – why do ours need to go faster?

USA is a bit bigger than the UK and the maximum speed (one line only) is 150 MPH - why do ours need to go faster?

What is this obsession with speed? What prompts seemingly intelligent government people to support HS2? Virtually every argument that has been put up by HS2 has been destroyed by HS2 opposition and, most of the time, they are left with the argument that the opposition is mainly NIMBYs and that there were similar arguments when trains first started.

You can find endless intelligent discourse about high speed rail if you spend hours on the Internet but the bottom line is that most of the cost and environmental damage comes from the proposed top speeds. 

Go faster and you use more fuel.

Go faster and the track cannot cope with tight bends and therefore cannot follow existing transport routes.

Go faster and you have to move in straight lines which ignore the beauty of our country.

Go faster and you need a wider track, more space at each side and more space between the up and down lines.  It is estimated that the total width of the track is more than two motorways wide.

Go faster and you make more noise.

Go faster and you need more expensive rolling stock.

Go faster and you probably have more spectacular crashes.

Going fast is not a bad idea BUT surely 140 MPH or thereabouts is quick enough for the UK?

HS2 – speeding to environmental and financial disaster.

Join in opposition against HS2 even if the track is not going anywhere near you - you will be paying for it wherever you live in the UK and you are very unlikely to find a useful HS station near you.