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HS2: Members’ Survey

As members will know, the Chiltern Society is opposed to any high speed rail route crossing the Chilterns. We are working with other groups and organisations with similar views to persuade the Government against such a course.

Our position is that we are not opposed to high speed rail as a concept, although we have serious doubts about the economic viability of HS2. The Society’s remit is to protect, enhance and promote the Chilterns, and the view of the Executive Council and those actively working on this issue on the Society’s behalf is that a high speed rail route across the Chilterns will devastate the countryside that we prize so highly.

It is important, however, that as the consultation and the HS2 issue gather momentum, we know the views of our members. The Society is the largest organisation, in terms of membership, representing the Chilterns as a whole, and in the coming months the Society will engage further with politicians, HS2 Ltd and other decision makers. Both the Society’s negotiators and those to whom we are talking need to know the membership’s views.

Please complete the survey below. On this occasion we are asking members to include their name and address, so we can verify it is a members-only survey. This is only for verification purposes and we will not publicise or otherwise use the information received without your permission. A more wide-ranging survey may be commissioned later in the year.

HS2 Questionnaire

Please complete the form below by 30 September. Your comments are welcome and will guide the Society’s HS2 team.

Q1
Is it acceptable for HS2 to cross the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty?
Yes No

Q2
Do you believe HS2 should cross any part of the Chilterns, bearing in mind that alternative routes could include the Goring Gap or a route along the existing West Coast main line corridor that runs through Berkhamsted?
Yes No

Q3
In your opinion, which of these five possible routes would cause least harm to the Chilterns?

Misbourne Valley (Existing ‘preferred’ route – Route 3)

Hughenden Valley (Beaconsfield to Princes Risborough – Route 2.5)

New line, more or less following West Coast main line (Hemel, Berkhamsted, Tring – Route 4)

Separate high speed line through the Goring Gap (Reading to Oxford)

Run alongside the M40

Q4
What are your main concerns regarding the impact on the environment if HS2 crossed the Chilterns?
Visual impact
Noise
Light pollution
Air quality
Safety issues
Interruption of footpaths
Loss of ancient woodland
Other (please state below)

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Q5
Do you feel any environmental mitigation can be effective in addressing these concerns?
Yes No

Q6
If 'Yes', what mitigation should be considered?
Tunnels
Cuttings
Slower speeds
Noise barriers
Night-time ban
Other (please state below)

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Q7
How do you judge the Society’s response so far to the HS2 proposals?
Should be more strident in opposition
About right
Should tone down its opposition
Should accept HS2 will cross the Chilterns and concentrate on mitigation

Q8
Are you generally supportive of the principle of developing high speed trains (i.e, those that can travel at 200mph plus) in Britain?
Yes No

Q9
If 'No', why not:
Too expensive
Unlikely to be well used
Should improve existing network instead
Travel time savings too negligible to justify cost
Safety concerns
Impact on countryside
Other (please state below)

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Q10
If a high speed network was developed, do you think you would use it for long distance travel – for instance to the north and Scotland?
Yes No

Q11
What aspects of the Chilterns do you value most? Please score out of 7, where 7 is most important and 1 is least important.
Views of the countryside
Quiet enjoyment of natural sounds
Hills and valleys
Streams
Woodland
Villages and hamlets
Walking and rights of way
Other (please state below)

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Any other comments you would like to make.

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Name

Address

Telephone

Email

Please very carefully check all the information above before clicking the submit button below.

Thank you.