VILLAGERS have reacted angrily to an exhibition promoting the HS2 high speed railway at Warrington.
Hundreds of people visited the exhibition, mounted by HS2 Ltd at Culcheth Sports Club yesterday.
But an exit poll carried out by members of the Culcheth and District Rail Action Group (CADRAG) suggested that local residents were 100 per cent opposed to the railway.
Cllr Keith Bland, a member of Culcheth and Glazebury Parish Council and also of CADRAG said: “People dismissed the exhibition as a slick PR job.
“There were a lot of people from HS2 there but they were not really interested in answering people’s questions. They were there to promote HS2 – that’s all.”
Cllr Bland, whose home is only 100 yards from Culcheth Sports Club, erected a gazebo and an inflatable white elephant in his garden to attract the attention of people visiting the exhibition. He was joined by fellow members of CADRAG and also residents of Rixton and Glazebrook, which will also be affected if HS2 goes 
ahead on the preferred route.
He said: “I made my garden available because CADRAG were not allowed to have a stand at the exhibition inside the club.
“People are opposing this scheme because of the devastating affect it will have on Culcheth and surrounding areas.
“It will cut through the Taylor Industrial Estate and Culcheth Linear Park. It will affect other local businesses, residents and farmers.
“The impact it would have on the community during the construction period would be terrible.
“We could not find one local person who supported the proposed route of the line. Many people even doubt the business case for building HS2 at all.
“People were against it before this exhibition was held but they are even more opposed to it afterwards.”
Cllr Bland’s wife – borough councillor Sue Bland – was kept busy making cups of tea and coffee for people calling in to talk to CADRAG members during the day.
She said: “This campaign against HS2 has really united the community.”
Pictures: The HS2 exhibition (top) and Cllr Bland (centre) and fellow campaigners with their white elephant.
6 Comments
I can smell nimby……………………………………………….
It should come as no surprise the HS2 team effectively barred CADRAG from setting up a stall in Culcheth Sports Club to explain its stance on the HS2 proposals. Every argument promoting HS2 has been logically examined and all have been shown to be flawed. They have run out of ideas, so much so Michael Heseltine is now saying the once prized costs estimates on which HS2 were extensively showcased, are little more than “mumbo jumbo”. Instead he says the country should exercise a greater “sense of adventure” in spending £40 billion (and rising by the day) on the high speed line. One more example, if it were needed, to confirm our politicians have an in-built tendency towards profligacy when it comes to spending public money. HS2 is nothing more than a politically motivated vanity project, the money for which should and could be spent more beneficially on improving our existing railway network to the benefit of the whole country and all rail users.
Karlar….. improving the existing network would be disaterous…. have you ever seen the disruption caused when they do even the smallest amount of work on any of the main lines?…. replacement buses, cancelled trains, massive delays…. that happens when only a part of the network is worked on and that is usually only at weekends. Now imagine how it would be if they had to carry out massive works on the whole of the west or east coast mainlines….. the disruption would last for decades. We need a new network (whether HS2 is the answer; I really doubt that as I can’t see the need for anyone to get to London 20 minutes faster than at the moment….just get an earlier train if that’s what you want to do) but new lines both up the east and west coasts; running alongside the existing would surely be a better use of £40billion….. expansion without the major disruption
This event was nothing more than a HS2 propaganda show. They were unable to answer the questions that really matter in terms of job losses, road closures, disruption to local businesses etc. They did however make bold claims about the “benefits” of HS2, none of which could be substantiated. Just another tick box exercise from HS2 Ltd. As karlar states, HS2 is nothing more than a political exercise, there is no business/economic or environmental case to support it.
The HS2 website http://www.hs2.org does not permit comments as it is awaiting a new .gov website? The sustainability study depends on air travel reducing to make HS2 viable- as if. The tranche of land the rail corridor would accommodate two tracks with a fence to fence width of 22m for an at-grade railway (reduced to 15m where space is restricted) to allow for the inclusion of access tracks, etc. using up to 25m clearance on each side of the route for landscaping,
The bio diversity from Warburton to Lowton includes Great Crested Newts and if one looks at subsidence on M62 the proposed line will run quite close to this area.
HGV’s in and out of the sites will require almost constant flow of traffic to remove spoli and supply materials, why not re route on the existing line through Bank Quay and improve the growth potential of Warrington Town Centre rataher than destroy tranquil villages.
Baz, I understand your concerns and share your views on “the benefits of shaving” 20 minutes off the journey time to London. But the existing rail network is crying out for much needed improvement and has been for many years. It was decimated at a stroke by short-termism an by shorter sighted politicians and has never recovered. As usual with things in this country, a vital resource has been pretty much left to its own devices with minimal maintenance – making a mockery of high level bonuses paid to Network Rail management et al “for meeting their targets”. The way the WCML was upgraded was a complete fiasco, that story has yet to properly aired. The reason it took so long is because it was badly managed, badly engineered and not done properly the first time. The whole country, not just west and east CMLs, needs access to a proper rail network that everyone can usefully use. If you think new lines both up the east and west coasts; running alongside the existing would not result in decades of the disruption, think again. Our whole network needs the £40 plus (don’t under estimate government guesstimates).
Do you remember what the Beeching Report (commissioned politicians) said? “First, the industry must be of a size and pattern suited to modern conditions and prospects. In particular, the railway system must be modelled to meet current needs, and the modernisation plan must be adapted to this new shape”. And look where we are 50 years on. Now we are being treated like idiots if we don’t embrace the politicians’ (because they are the only ones driving this white elephant) view of our rail future.