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All that HS2 would achieve is a faster journey from A to B. If you add C and D as stops, most of the time saving dissappears. In our crowded island, the extra stops would be needed.
If a Pendolino carries 500 passengers, six trains per hour (on a single track) gives a maximum of 3000 passengers per hour. On HS2, headways would have to be longer and I don't think any more than 3000 passengers per hour would be possible.
To achieve very little, HS2 would cost at least £20billion at todays prices. Given that it would take at least 10 years to be up and running, the final bill would be upwards of £50 billion and counting.
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