Oh no! This one will confuse you, I'm sure. If you're familiar with the Stocklake area.

@@KarlVaughan Naaaah!!! I always follow along using the National Library of Scotland maps, and Google Earth. BUt, yeah, I'm horrified with the volume of building in Aylesbury!

We have such a great resource these days. That NLS site is so useful. I can't believe it's free.

Great video Karl and a good bit of detective work finding the old railway line. No wonder the roads around Aylesbury are so congested - so many new houses with cars!

They are putting back the level crossing. I imagine it's down to costs as a bridge would be more expensive to build. That's my guess anyway.

Cool, thanks for the input

@@JT-nr2ss I guess you don't live near it?

I'm inclined to agree with you. That would require governments with vision and commitment though, which we don't currently have. They are not serious about the railways.

Cheers, yes you're probably right although the two projects are related so I kept it under the HS2 umbrella for simplicity.

Thanks for watching. Yes, that solar farm is huge!

I'm glad you enjoyed it. For once, the powers that be have prepared for the future regarding that new bridge.

I'm glad you enjoyed the journey. Those overgrown bits were annoying but thankfully there weren't that many. The Wendover Arm is mostly flat but I believe it used to have locks in the past.

The Wendover Arm never had any locks. It just follows the lie of the land with a bit of cutting here and some banking there. I think the main leakage problem was on a banked section above the reservoirs.

I didn't expect my journey home to be so wet, otherwise I would have taken a different route. You asked about mileage - I get around 60 miles out of it but of course that depends where I'm riding it. I found out recently that I don't even need assistance along the canal towpath as my speed is about 10mph. You'll love riding the Cube. They are so comfortable and responsive.

@@KarlVaughan Thanks for the reply 🙂 If that's 60 miles on canal paths and roads then that'll be quite a similar power usage to my needs. Have you ever tried riding it without the motor turned on, just to test for drag from the motor? I'm itching to buy one but I'm between L and XL as the Kathmandu version is a big frame so just need to find a shop with one in stock 😁 Cheers 👍

I tried it with the motor off on a recent journey along the canal towpath and it was fine. That's what I like about the bike. It lets you pedal over the 15.5mph limit without any resistance. It feels like a normal bike.

@@KarlVaughan Thanks very much for that, it's very good to know that there's minimal drag. Cheers 👍

Thanks for watching. Yeah, those earbuds/headphones are a frustration. Three times wasn't it that I rang the bell? For me, when I'm out in places like that it's the nature that is music to my ears. I like to hear what's around me.

As you saw, it didn't look very organised. Especially when the Thames Water blokes nicked one digger that angered the HS2 bloke. I wonder if it will ever get finished!

Absolutely. I was impressed by the section between Wendover and Halton. They've done a great job there.

I'm not sure about flying over it but I could have a look from a short distance away. Watch this space!

They had to realign the existing railway line to go over a bridge, which meant removing the crossing. That's now done and the level crossing is being re-installed.

Glad it was helpful!

Is it hot in Florida right now, Harvey?

The bike is as it came from the shop brand new. I've done nothing to it. Actually these bikes can go faster than 15.5mph, just like any normal bike if you pedal harder or go downhill.

​@@KarlVaughan do you get much drag from the motor when pedalling unassisted over 15.5 mph? Cheers 👍

Oh I see. It's baffling to me why everything can't be agreed before work begins. That way the project gets done quicker and cheaper.

There are a number of problems to achieve that. 1) The HS2 Agency are short of staff so cannot cope with managing the workload. 2) there are literally thousands of planning requirements to meet from hundreds of planning authorities and a shortage of town planners so the scope of works programme is running hopelessly late. 3) There are thousands of services diversions and highway alterations to make. Every time a services diversions becomes known the Contractors hsve to agree a method statement with the services provider on the proposed method of diversion. And every time a service crosses a road, river or railway the Highways Agency. Network Rail or British Waterways have to be consulted. All this means the project will run for many more years, with resulting cost rises which nobody can foresee.

That's the very drone I'm using. I particularly like the Waypoints feature on this drone. I can program a flight path and use the same one every time I return to site. It really is useful. Also the weight is a good thing as I cycle everywhere.

I agree it's a mess on the landscape but as for few people using it in the future, I'm pretty sure the same was said about the first motorways. They created a huge amount of mess at the time and now most people don't give them a second thought. Remember this new railway line doesn't just serve the south. It is to release capacity further north, at least that's what the experts say. It remains to be seen if that actually happens.

@KarlVaughan yes that is true. But motorways were a transportation solution yet to exist, you can use a motorway with easy and cheaply, The same cant be said about this, for us we would have to get the train one way to then go back the other way...making the speed of travel time to brum on hs2 of no benefit. There are railway networks already and when was the last time many of us went up north regularly on a train? I dont know...not me or anyone I know. If I was to travel any length of the country Id be doing it in a car so I can take what I need. Personally, I think the cost and the damage it's done to an already overcrowded landscape in terms of construction was an absolute waste. What with the boom in remote working that seems to have stayed in place post covid and big companies reducing office space etc...Im not even sure the theres as much of a case to say people will use it to travel for work in a huge way. But you videos are very interesting to see what they are doing....the drone has incredible video quality.

if more trains are run per hour (i think plan is hopefully 17) then that will defo encourage more people to use train, which i think is the future and hopefully reduce piss annoying cars of our roads, i think the main problem is cost

If you look at the stats regarding train usage currently the demographic has changed and figures are returning to pre-Covid levels. I was surprised when I found this out as I expected the same as you with people now working from home meaning usage had fallen. The problems on the rail network are around Crewe and elsewhere in that area. It is a bottleneck apparently which is why HS2 is being built - to take the fast trains off those lines so they can be freed up for local services. I'm only going off what others in the know have said. The KZbin channel Green Signals often has people on who work in the industry and they are very knowledgable. I'm glad you like my videos and yes, the drone I use (DJI Mini 4 Pro) is excellent quality. I love using it.

I'm getting so tired of this copy and pasted comment

I have the documents on my computer which I found on Buckinghamshire Council's planning portal.

Thanks again!

Ha! Your crystal balls seem to be working OK. Give them another polish to be on the safe side.

Such things are considered when road closures are planned - emergency vehicle access is maintained. I have been involved in a project in London the required one of the river crossing be closed and they took lots of organisation!

@@davecardboard9567 Details would help,..How can anyone in that area get to A and E at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in an emergency?,..Marsh lane is also closed,...

They would have to go via haddenham and princess risborough. A pretty lengthy detour.

@@bikeman123 Doesn't that depend on where they're coming from? Fire engines could come from Haddenham and Thame, SCAS & TVP could also come from the same area.

It's all about threading a new railway about 100 miles in length in between and around the countries infrastructure which involves thousands of services diversions, highway alterations and planning conditions. And where any work is required to go over or under existing railways, rivers or roads, getting method statements agreed with the relevant authority. All of which the extent was unknown when the project was given the go ahead.

The planning application is on Buckinghamshire Council's planning portal with all the documents. I can't understand it either!

Maybe they forgot to put the bridge in the TWA ( Act of Parliament) or a detail of it?

I believe the fact it has to happen is with the government but the how it is done/how it looks is left to councils. As a result, rather than using the normal planning acts they are planning applications under Schedule 17 to the High Speed Rail (London - West Midlands) Act 2017.

In the UK large "national" infrastructure projects are (and have always been) granted deemed planning permission by Act of Parliament so that (for example) individual land owners or local authorities cannot "hold the project to ransom" so to speak or veto it. The HS2 Act provides some ability for Local Authorities to have some input on the details. So, for (a trite) example, they can ask for a building to be painted red instead of green, but they cannot fundamentally veto that the building gets built. If they try to "game" the process to filibuster, ultimately it ends up in the hands of the Secretary Of State and they will often rule to the effect of "is you cannot agree something between you then get what Parliament authorised in the Act."

Getting automatic planning permission is one thing. Agreeing planning conditions to satisfy is quite another.

The option for that has been left open. It's all about the financial case for it at the moment, I believe. Hopefully when the new line is open through Winslow things will start to happen. It certainly would be good for Aylesbury if we got the connection to the north again. It's been over 50 years now.

Haha, yes I know. The Chilterns are nothing compared to places further north. I've walked in the Peak District so I know how it is up there. I imagine the bike does really well.

I tried turbo when going through a tricky muddy and wet tree root covered woodland section recently and it really helped me.

@KarlVaughan I'm 65 and find turbo best on longer draggy hills it gives much more assistance than EMTB. The hill in this video would have been so much easier in turbo.

The next time I encounter a big hill I will give it a go.

HS2 is an environmental miracle of epic proportions, it's going to save thousands of tonnes of CO2 and provide thousands of hectares of new environment for wildlife species in something of a green spine across the country. Britains largest infrastructure need in half a century, and the rest of the cancelled sections are sorely needed!

@@fndjfgsdk .. haha, yet another gullible HS2 fanboy quoting from HS2 Ltd's "perfect world" scenario. According to its own forecasts, HS2 is likely to result in the emission of 1.49 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, due to the way in which it's constructed. Worse, the proposal to run trains at 360 km per hour will require 50% more energy than the existing Eurostar trains. Such specifications deliver insignificant economic benefits & also require carbon-intensive slab-tracks. This doesn't even take into account the damage & disturbance HS2 will inflict on wildlife sites & woodlands. It's expected that 108 ancient woodlands will be negatively affected, as well as an additional 693 local wildlife sites. HS2 Ltd admitted that in its expected 120-year lifespan, HS2 will probably never be carbon neutral & are you aware that they've already incurred numerous fines for multiple breaches of environmental issues? Thousands of trees planted along the route in Warwickshire where the vast majority perished due to lack of aftercare. The pollution of streams, rivers & other waterways with toxic chemicals. The bulldozing of mile upon mile of hedgerows containing nesting birds when they specifically promised to wait until the nesting season was over .. the list goes on. Sadly for you, the new Labour government have got NO plans whatsoever to revive any of the cancelled sections .. in a recent interview, Sir Keir Starmer said.. "it's not possible to do as the Tory government have blown the budget & contracts are going to be cancelled" .. excellent news from Labour, at least they've got the sense to see this massive white elephant for what it really is - a massive cash cow.

Still fishing, I see. You got your catch this time!

@@KarlVaughan .. 🤣

Very little, it seems.

That's something else I don't understand about this site. Why can't the new road be completed with fencing at either end and then when it needs to be opened, simply remove the fencing overnight and open the new road? Why the original road needs to be closed entirely a number of times baffles me.

Thanks again. I agree with you there. This project has been meticulously planned and this is why I'm so surprised at the current situation regarding the overbridge. It's been like it for months. Every time I visit the site it looks the same!