To the surprise of no one, the treasury has knocked on the head the stupid idea of a bridge between Northern Ireland and Britain. Apart from the enormous cost, it would have been a massive engineering challenge. Not to mention over million tonnes of explosives and chemicals dumped in Beaufort’s Dyke.
From the Guardian:
Johnson was reportedly keen to link Northern Ireland to Great Britain as part of a broader vision to connect the constituent parts of the UK. But others have questioned whether the prime minister was genuine or seeking a distraction, noting that talk of bridging the Irish Sea follows similarly grandiose and ultimately undeliverable schemes he dreamed up while mayor of London.
Johnson first suggested connecting Stranraer in Scotland to Larne in Northern Ireland by bridge three years ago, an idea that was widely derided by engineers. Concerns were raised about the practicality of constructing a bridge across the stormy stretch of water, which is more than 1,000ft deep in places, and experts said it would require dozens of support towers at heights “never achieved anywhere in the world”.
The tunnel proposal was being considered by a transport connectivity review led by the Network Rail chair, Sir Peter Hendy; two engineering professors were commissioned to lead a feasibility study into a bridge or tunnel.
Can we still have the money for other more useful public services please?
I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism, I am not a member of any political party. Oddly for a member of the Slugger team, I am not that interested in daily politics, preferring to write about big ideas in society. When not stuck in front of a screen, I am a parkrun Run Director.