There's a lot wrong with the rail system. HS2 will be irrelevant to most people. The money would be better spent on upgrading what's there. Plenty of room to quadruple main routes and increase capacity. There are not enough trains and not enough capacity. The volume of users is rising rapidly. My train of choice to work at 7.15 which once was half full is now basically standing room only. So I get the one before at 6.42 which is only a third full.
Pricing is ridiculously complex and unbalanced so some routes - such as Sheffield-Birmingham is stupidly expensive and overcrowded. Birmingham to Malvern takes a similar time but is about £7 return.............
I can get from home to Kings Cross in under two and a half hours, and a carefully chosen ticket can be under £30. At certain times even first class is affordable. I try to use that coming home. A relaxing trip with food & wine. That's what railways should be like!!!!
