The second phase of High Speed 2 (HS2) was announced by the Department for Transport in January 2013. The HS2 scheme which will cost the taxpayer around £33 billion will revolutionise travel and slash the time it takes to travel across the country. For example the time it takes to travel by train from Manchester to London Euston is currently around 2 hours and 14 minutes, with HS2 that will be cut to 68 minutes. HS2 is controversial though and critics warn that HS2 will ruin the countryside and that the billions invested on HS2 are better spent elsewhere – particularly with the cuts to public services. Some of those criticisms are rightly justified but there needs to be a way of boosting the economy and getting more businesses to invest in the UK.

This morning the second phase of High Speed 2 (HS2) was announced by the Department for Transport. The HS2 scheme which will cost £33 billion will revolutionise travel and slash the time it takes to travel across the country. For example the time it takes to travel by train from Manchester to London Euston is currently around 2 hours and 14 minutes, with HS2 that will be cut to 68 minutes. HS2 is controversial though and critics warn that HS2 cuts through the countryside and that the billions invested on HS2 are better spent elsewhere. Some of those criticisms are rightly justified but there needs to be a way of boosting the economy and getting more businesses to invest in the UK.

The Transport Secretary Phillip Hammond has announced that the speed limit on motorways in Britain will increase from 70 miles per hour to 80 miles per hour in 2013. The announcement comes a day after the Department for Transport announced that the number of road accidents reported to the police is down 6% in 2010 compared to 2009. Additionally the number of people killed in 2010 was down 17% compared to 2009 and the number of people seriously injured in road accidents is down 8%.

However safety campaigners have warned that increasing the speed limit by 10 MPH could mean lives are put at risk particularly as crash barriers can only withstand a 70 MPH crash. There are also downsides to the proposal such as increased fuel consumption and the impact that could have on the climate.

Supporters of the move say it would mean faster journey times which is good for the economy. Perhaps one suggestion would be to increase the speed limit when the roads are quieter such as between 10PM and 6AM? Either way it could be hard to implement as a number of drivers already exceed the 70MPH speed limit on Britain’s motorways.

TSF