Delays in completing East-West Rail, linking Cambridge to Oxford, are holding up the development of a new British Silicon Valley, slowing the growth of research and development facilities in life sciences and artificial intelligence both in the two cities and the villages and towns between them. There its no direct rail link between the two places, and the road connection is diabolical. —– Most… Continue reading
Portland the sensible sustainable city of the future
Green clean destination in the American North West Lonely Planet and New York Times chose Portland as the place to go in 2017. And direct London-Portland flights begin in May 2017. People who have never been to the USA, and only know it through movies and TV shows, may be surprised at its cultural and political diversity…. Continue reading →
Nissan plans to sell a car to share, not to own outright
Nissan to launch shared-ownership cars. Nissan has come up with a good marketing idea, and it doesn’t involve selling more cars. If you live in the South East, although it could be any urban area these days, you will be familiar with streets clogged with parked cars, with house drives where there are three or more vehicles. How much are… Continue reading →
Could new London Marylebone link to Oxford signal railway expansion?
Lucky Oxford. It will have two fast railway connections to London from Monday, December 12 (2016). That is the day the new Marylebone to Oxford line will open. (Oxford is already served by trains from Paddington Station.) The link will be billed, correctly, as the first new connection between London and a major city in… Continue reading →
Visit England showcases stay at home travellers’ delights
The view from the 69th floor of the Shard in London is stupendous. With a bit of time, and guidance, I am sure you could pick out, on a clear day, two or three surrounding counties, as well as the whole of the metropolis itself. But Visit England, in its 2017 Showcase event there, wanted… Continue reading →
Shopping phenomenon Bicester Village rail station hits 1 million
One year on (November 3rd 2016) since it opened, and 1 million people are said to have used Bicester Village station. That’s quite a figure. And there is more expansion to come, with the completion of the line to Oxford city centre on December 12 (2016). There is a direct service from London’s Marylebone station, fast (49 minutes,… Continue reading →