For the first time in more than a century, the UK is considering building a new mainline railway. The public body responsible for railway infrastructure, Network Rail, has announced it is commissioning a review into the future of its five main rail lines. This opens up the possibility of supplementing the network with high-speed rail links like the French TGV trains or the Japanese Shinkansen network.
Great Britain, however, is not France or Japan. It is a small island dominated by a small number of cities that are relatively close together. Even without high-speed links, the government's 2006 review of transport found that British cities have relatively good intercity links compared with their rivals. The study made clear that Britain does not need bullet trains.
