Aterm created by the poet and satirist Alexander Pope has been coming to mind as I have been battling through first the Williams-Shapps Plan (an ongoing campaign) and now the Integrated Rail Plan (IRP). The more I have analysed the ‘plans’, it has dawned that their authors may have a grand vision of the railway they want to create but no grasp of what will be involved in achieving it – assuming it is achievable.
These are 21st century archetypes of Pope’s ‘half-learn’d witlings’. And while they may not be ‘num’rous in our isle’, they are certainly num’rous in the Department for Transport.
As readers will know, this column declared a self-denying ordinance when High Speed 2 was launched, on the grounds that covering the project properly would take too much time away from reporting on the current railway. However, while the IRP has attracted much opprobrium for its ‘betrayal' of HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail, its compensation for these lacunae includes promises of dramatically reduced journey times with increased capacity on the East Coast main line (ECML).
This route has been a specialist subject of this column from its foundation. So, while my colleagues cover the big picture, I will try to m…
