This is good news and from my vague understanding it won’t require huge investment in tracks since HS1 is already built to the superior European Loading Gauge; the biggest changes will be building facilities at the German stations and the legalese. But, if anyone involved is reading, please, please, please: sleeper trains from London. I want to fall asleep in Kent and wake up in Berlin, Warsaw, Vienna, Rome, etc. Ideally I’d also like to know which city I’ll be waking up in but really I’m not picky.
That’s great to hear about the guage matching. Many of the European nations are having to rebuild old networks to match the EU standard, notably up in the Baltics.
There is good news about sleeper trains: they’re making a comeback in a few routes and regions. Hopefully people will keep using them since it’s a great way to travel and save time in your destinations.
Please no, we’re already spending 60 billion on like 30 miles of ‘high’ speed rail, a direct rail link to germany would suck in so much cash it would probably implode the entire world economy somehow.
(Not a dig against rail just the UKs incredible ability to spend gargantuan amounts of money for almost nothing)Germany is spending billions in 10km of highway in the middle of Berlin, that no locals want, and will end in local roads that can’t drain even half of the protected traffic. At least this project is not completely imbecilic.
It’s going to be the same thing as with the Brenner tunnel.
It’s a massive rail project connecting Italy, Austria and Germany. Italy and Austria are building a massive 64km long tunnel through the Alps, mostly on time and in budget (slight overrun, not a lot).
Germany is supposed to build a surface rail track to connect to the tunnel. Nothing complicated, just rail tracks. They haven’t even started yet, because a handful NIMBYs are more important than a huge infrastructure project.
Expect the same when UK and Germany are building a direct rail connection.
This isn’t about another tunnel, it’s just having passport checks in Germany and not having to switch trains and going through border control in Brussels.
This is really not a big deal at all.
Exactly the same situation at the Fehmarn Tunnel to denmark
I hope they considered the Braess Paradoxon:
