In the news today: The HS2 rail development could end up costing around double the original projections, at around 80 billion of your  Earth pounds sterling .

Choo! Choo! Cockneys coming through!
Soon to be seen close-up by half a million people?

Additionally, the building of the snaking carbuncle dribbling mostly up the left hand side of England, and then bifurcating into the middle too, will apparently affect about half a million people directly, in terms of impact upon them during construction.

Most people would be disturbed enough by the disruption caused when asked by their son if they can set up their train set downstairs. Let alone smashing down the whole house so that David Cameron’s infrastructure storm troopers can put his up there.

 Looking further at the plans, there’s a phase outlined to extend it further up to Scotland.

Alex Salmond notwithstanding, of course. As if he gets his way with independence, it’ll probably have to screech to a halt for passport checks, strip searches, and changing currency once it gets to the border.

Ignoring all this though, one can’t help but get the feeling that the entire project is solely about ensuring people can get to London in the fastest possible time.

You could ponder whether the whole damn thing started when they decided to punt most of the BBC up to Manchester. Yes. Let’s save some license payer money  by moving the BBC up to Manchester, and then get the taxpayer to build an enormously quick train service, so all the million-pound mansion dwelling presenters can be back for pink gin and caviar each weekend, or even each evening.

Because, if you look at the proposed journey times Manchester to London could be a journey of about one hour and eight minutes. That’s daily commuter territory.

Ignoring the BBC “wrong way” commute to work, this scheme could be seen as another way to make every poor bastard in this country a commuter, if they so wish.

Coupled with the seemingly unending desire of every company to be in London, rather than anywhere else, it kind of makes sense.

So, get your braces on, disguise your regional accent, and practice your best Lambeth Walk. We’re all commuters now…

Get it over with. Let Alex Salmond put his new Hadrian’s Wall up. Call everything below it London.

As an added bonus, geographically it’ll be exactly what every other American tourist thinks is the case anyway.

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/aug/18/hs2-budget-rail-study

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-23744619

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Speed_2