Jon Worth

Ah

I see Deutsche Bahn has taken to behaving like a night train startup and started drawing lines on maps - for a sort of dream 2050 high speed network

https://www.deutschebahn.com/de/presse/pressestart_zentrales_uebersicht/DB-legt-Studie-zum-Ausbau-des-Hochgeschwindigkeitsverkehrs-in-Europa-vor--10878404

Sure, aim high. But there's not a hope in hell this comes to pass given current politics. I don't think DB can even deliver on the bits of it that it'd have to deliver on

DB legt Studie zum Ausbau des Hochgeschwindigkeitsverkehrs in Europa vor

Jul 8, 2023 at 11:26amWeb
Show threadQuixoticgeekJul 8, 2023
@jon The lines through .NL are most entertaining. Would be great, but...
Show threadJon WorthJul 8, 2023
@quixoticgeek I started thinking “ah hang on which of the lines on the map are worst" and then when I already had a dozen in my head thought sod it, this work does not need any serious thinking from me, because they did not put enough serious thinking into it!
Show threadQuixoticgeekJul 8, 2023
@jon It would be awesome to see a network like this. I just wish it was more plausible.
Show threadReiner Jung 🇬🇱 🇺🇦 🇪🇺Jul 8, 2023
@jon looks like a good idea. HH-H, S-Zürich and S-Würzburg are very important, but then they need another train station in Stuttgart.
Show threadJon WorthJul 8, 2023
@prefec2 Sure, the ideas are OK. Not a hope in hell it happens though.
Show threadReiner Jung 🇬🇱 🇺🇦 🇪🇺Jul 8, 2023
@jon it's a shame.
Show threadLiminal witch 🧙‍♀️ SarahJul 8, 2023

@jon Knowing Czech politics, 2050 is not a realistic timeline

On the other hand, I'm really looking forward to Rail Baltica to be finished

Show threadMartin HoffmannJul 8, 2023
@jon The only country where > 140 kph qualifies as higher speed is probably the Netherlands.
Show threadTrevin "TJ" Ward 🚲🚇Jul 8, 2023
@partim @jon cries in North American 🤦🏻‍♂️
Show threadMartin HoffmannJul 8, 2023
@tedger @jon Funny thing: guess where the Dutch borrowed ATB from.
Show threadTachibana KanadeJul 8, 2023
@jon Wow, given the level of crayoning in that map you wonder why they didn’t include the Tallinn–Helsinki tunnel.
Show threadInga stands with 🇺🇦 🇵🇸Jul 8, 2023
@jon feels like typical politicians promise. Anything can happen by 2050, but the execs reaping benefits from making these promises now will certainly not be around by then, and will not be held accountable. So they make the rosiest promises possible, regardless of any actual willingness or possibility to follow on them. Failure to implement these promises will be their successors responsibility, not theirs.
Works with all the other topics too (e.g. climate change)...
Show threadJon WorthJul 8, 2023
@IngaLovinde Yep. Totally. And they expect praise for it now - and I sure as hell am not going to give it.
Show threadConstantin A.Jul 8, 2023
@jon Even I can see that this is super unrealistic, I mean Paderborn—Kassel ≥ 300 km/h?! They don't even plan to do 200.
(If that's what I think it is. Unfortunately they didn't bother to even add some cities to their map)
Show threadbluGillJul 8, 2023
@jon i'm only interested in what will finish is the next two years. Everything else is subject to change anyway. If it isn't open in two years, from breaking ground they are doing too much at once.
Show threadRob AbramJul 8, 2023
@jon given that they can’t manage a stable hourly service on the VBB RE7 (this afternoon consecutive services were cancelled, delayed by 120 minutes, delayed by 70 minutes, and delayed by 15 minutes) or notice that a 5-coach Talent every hour at weekends is JUST NOT ENOUGH, I have no reason to believe in their airy-fairy plans.
Show threadJon WorthJul 8, 2023
@robabram Right. Or that in Fernverkehr they’re incapable of getting Bruxelles - Frankfurt running reasonably. The company has too many short term fires to fight to have a hope of doing this.
Show threadJoost WeryJul 8, 2023
@jon We need to bring this about! https://www.connect-capitals-hsr.eu
Connect European Capitals by High-Speed Rail | Connect European Capitals by High-Speed Rail

Show threadJon WorthJul 8, 2023
@joostwery no we don’t. It’s as ill designed as DB’s map. High speed above all isn’t right. High speed has a role, sure, but there’s more to EU rail than that.
Show threadJoost WeryJul 8, 2023
@jon How exactly does this plan (though ambitious) deny that?