Sir, A Scotland/Manchester/ London high-speed railway would not only attract 70 per cent of the current seven million annual air passengers (letter, Dec 18) but, with a link to High Speed 1 bypassing London, millions more for distances of up to 450 miles between English cities and continental cities served by high-speed lines. Space would be freed on our existing network for freight trains and more stopping passenger trains. Demand for expansion of airports would be much reduced.

In Victorian times building tens of thousands of miles of railway in Britain and the Empire was financed privately. Could not high-speed lines be similarly financed, if land around out-of-town regional railports could be acquired at existing use values?

JOHN PINCHAM
Cobham, Surrey

Sir, Some years ago I interviewed American and Japanese investors and buyers and only one supported the idea of substituting trains for planes on routes up to 450 miles — all the others said: “If we can’t fly there, we can’t get there.” Other European nations recognise this. French airlines serve 28 domestic routes from Paris Orly, and 13 from Charles de Gaulle airports. The number of daily flights to Lyons was increased from 11 to 14 recently, though the trains take only 1h 54min. The Germans restored six daily air services on the 98-mile Stuttgart-Frankfurt route after an unsuccessful attempt at substitution. And in Japan there are 56 daily air services from Tokyo to Osaka, in parallel with the very-high-speed trains.

Both modes of transport are needed. Faster trains mean higher fuel consumption, and some use more energy per passenger mile than the A321 Airbus.

TONY LUCKING
London WC2

Sir, I do not know what Network Rail is talking about when its spokesman says “traditionally there has never been a rail service in Britain on Christmas Day and Boxing Day” (report, Dec 18). There are plenty of us who are old enough to remember catching a train on Christmas Day in the 1960s; and many more who remember doing so on Boxing Day as late as the 1970s.

Please could we have a commitment to the needs of passengers from Network Rail, rather than ill-informed complacency?

JAMES LANCELOT
Durham

Sir, You say that LNER’s steam service in 1938 was 7hr 20min (report, Dec 16). This is not correct as The Coronation streamlined train started in 1937, completing the journey in exactly six hours.

There was one train daily in each direction — to Edinburgh stopping at York and Newcastle, and to London stopping at Newcastle only. Passengers were free to use a 16-seat observation car at the rear of each train. They were usually on time.

These trains were discontinued when war broke out in 1939.

KEN PAGE
Biggleswade, Herts

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