Yes; George Stephenson would be red faced today if he saw the state of Britain’s rail network today, compared with the rest of Western Europe and Japan.
When we holidayed in Britian in 2009 we took the “Flying Scotsman” from London to Edinburgh. Both train and the railbed was not up to modern standards that the continent and Japan enjoy. The name Flying Scotsman is woefully out of date.
I agree. I have travelled in Western Europe and JApan and they outshine us in many aspects. I was enormously impressed with railways in Japan - clean, efficient and on time to the second ( it helps that people behave politely on trains. When they get a call on their cell they walk to the end of the carriage and take it there. )
The problem in the UK is that Railways are seen as a “problem” rather than a source of national pride ( as in many European Contries ). Part of the problem is that the railbed is owned and maintained by a different outfit than the train companies. The reputation of the company that owns and maintains the trackbed is lower than dirt - a number of avoidable fatal accidents happened on their watch which were a result of using unskilled and untrained workers who were cheaper.
Meanwhile the train companies are encouraged to bid low for their “franchises” and as a result keep running old and tired trains. Ticket prices are very high and the variety of tickets is confusing.
That’s a good point to note how the UK has a poorly run train system and how Japan and Western Europe have good ones. I believe the privatization of UK Rail under the conservative John Major government had a lot to do with its decline.
Can you still make the argument that we should do it because the Chinese are doing it?
[i]Beijing’s Empty Bullet Trains[/i]
By Nouriel Roubini
I think the Bullet Trains are a GREAT idea…IF AND ONLY IF people will actually use them. Waste of taxpayers money if you build and they don’t come.
I agree with that, especially if the government has the money to invest without having to borrow it and pay interest. High speed rail is a wonderful investment, where it will be utilized, and where the government can afford it.