How about a chord from HS2 to East - West Rail ?

[Halifaxlad]

Right since, long distance fast services are still to travel down the East Coast Mainline rather than being transferred to HS2. How about creating a chord off HS2 near Calvert onto East to West Rail and using this freed up capacity so that Birmingham and Manchester, (generally the North) could have a much faster service to Bristol (and maybe onto Cardiff/Swansea) via the Great Western Mainline ?

 

[gordonthemoron]

I'd prefer a Kreuz station where the lines cross

 

[HSTEd]

East West rail is so painfully slow that even with HS2 it wouldn't be competitive with conventional trains out of London termini.

 

[edwin_m]

I very much doubt Manchester to Bristol would be quicker by this route compared to changing at Birmingham, and I struggle to think of any other journeys that would be accelerated, except perhaps a few to/from such places as Winslow. Is this really worth the huge hit on HS2 capacity?

 

[30907]

East West rail is so painfully slow that even with HS2 it wouldn't be competitive with conventional trains out of London termini.

I think it's 100mph at the Bicester end - but Calvert to Parkway would take a good hour with Oxford and Swindon stops, so you couldn't match the direct route. OTOH (Leeds-)Manchester-Birmingham Interchange-Oxford might be very competitive.

Is this really worth the huge hit on HS2 capacity?

Fair point, but the OP was assuming that there would be spare paths with HS2E canned.

 

[cle]

It's crazy to me that where they intersect was not the location of one of those new garden city thingys from a few years back. Or a reasonable TOD. Super quick journeys to London and to the north. A new MK!

But in seriousness, I think this would only really benefit journeys to Bicester (if they called - another place of future of popn growth), Oxford and Reading. Might have released some paths for other things if XC-type South Coast services went that way, but now we need them all for the East Midlands.