Is "High Speed" the right solution for NPR?

[Senex]

The challenge is that NPR is needed to increase available capacity on the Transpennine routes to improve local services by removing faster long distance services. The transpennine route carries far too much of a mix of traffic and the mix between stoppers and fast services (plus freight) causes bottlenecks. There's already challenges in fitting in new stations in growth areas because the line is too full. TRU will only do so much.

And NPR was not just the NW with an extension tacked onto Yorkshire (despite what Andy Burnham thinks); it includes Leeds-Sheffield improvements, Manchester to Sheffield, Leeds to Bradford etc even ignoring the scope creep in Network North.

Unfortunately what will happen is that Manchester will get some shiny new infrastructure that does nothing for the broader north.

Essentially NPR will end up like HS2; promised much but the first sections only built (the line promised to Standedge tunnels will never happen) benefiting the most prosperous areas in the respective region with the best transport systems.

The problem might well end up (and then probably too far into the future to be of any interest to me) as some shiny new infrastructure in Manchester that not only does nothing for the broader north but does nothing for Manchester either (but does leave some politicians happy).

 

[GRALISTAIR]

The best the we can hope for is some improvements to existing lines. Electrifying the CLC would be a good start.

Indeed - helps with the acceleration and thus capacity.

 

[Transilien]

What I think is a major problem with the idea of NPR is that so many of the lines in the north haven’t been electrified yet. In my opinion the government should have at least committed to electrification of all trans-pennine routes before being so ambitious. NPR has always seemed to me to be a vote generator and quite a good but as things stand- a fanatical idea.