Train connections

Continental Europe has had a far stronger commitment to high speed rail over the past few decades than the U.K.. Where once Great Britain led the way, opening the World's first, fast intercity railway between London and Birmingham in 1837, it now boasts a rail system in shambles following years of a make do and mend approach to rail infrastructure by successive governments.
There has never been a better time to invest in rail. The technology already exists to operate fast, efficient, low carbon trains. The U.K. currently has 113 Km of high speed track and no more currently under construction or planned, the lowest of all European countries (well nearly, Switzerland will have 107Km). Built, under construction and planned track across Europe has: Belgium 209Km, France 4787Km, Germany 2333KM, Italy 1271, Portugal 1006Km, Spain 5515 to name but just 6.
Here's the good news; the government has made the demise of domestic air travel an explicit policy target by aiming to replace short haul flights with a new 250mph high speed rail network.
The transport secretary Lord Adonis (yes, Lord Adonis, bronzed I am sure) has put the switching of 46 million domestic air passengers per year to a multi billion pound north - south high speed rail alternative at the top of his agenda.
It makes a great deal of sense, rail uses one third of the land that motorways use and can move far more people/hour than air or car, carbon emissions are a quarter of those for car or aeroplane per passenger and the technology already exists to be able to get on with something that works and will continue to do so well into the future. Cost? High, but not that high... and would save £5 billion/year current rail subsidy (one would hope!).
Connected thinking is what we need here. Why do people travel in their cars rather than on the train? Is one good reason because in a car they have their own private space unimpeded by others while they travel? On the 13th July my blog mentioned "Riversimple" a company producing new hydrogen fuel cell powered cars. What if we were greatly encouraged to travel in these (and similar)? Local journeys would be a joy, long journeys..... ah, long journeys.... we stick our little car onto the high speed train (Eurotunnel style) zoom across to the city or town we want to be in sitting in our car, drive out of the train and whizz about in our little car. That would work.