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high-speed rail
The excitement generated by the St Pancras opening has caused a new wave of chatter about building more high-speed rail. However John Grimshaw questions the purpose if it simply causes people to travel further, while a letter in transporttimes questions the received wisdom that high-speed rail would kill demand for internal flights. There is plenty of evidence to the contrary, with good air-service on TGV served routes such as Paris to Lyon or ES high speed rail routes like Milan to Rome.
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matthew parris
Matthew Parris's vile Times article What's smug and deserves to be decapitated? is at least being investigated by the Press Complaints Commission, which has no legal powers however. Cyclist killed or seriously injured numbers, unlike those for car users, climbed in the first quartile of 2007 compared with that of 2006, continuing a trend of the last couple of years. Which makes it a good time for this joke: what's the difference between the Times and the Sun? About 50p.
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Forth Road Bridge
With the urgency involved, the The Forth Replacement Crossing was maybe never going to put aesthetics high on the list. Just before Christmas the Scottish Government announced that the replacement would be a cable-stayed bridge, which seems to be the first choice for new big bridges now. If it ends up with the row of pylons in this artist's impression then fingers crossed it will at least be as flexible and functional as the government is saying.
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