Virgin Trains could work with BHX to offer some sort of product whereby if your incoming flight was delayed (or arrived early) your advance purchase train ticket would be valid on an alternative train and maybe charge a £1 or £2 premium for this insurance, (call it what you will).
They already do, but it is informal. I had it the other way round back in Jan - arrived at LHR, 45 mins late but I'd allowed an hour margin + 60 mins to get bag + another 60 to get to Euston. I asked the tm what if I'd missed the train.
He said - bring evidence of flight delay (they can look up too if they are in helpful mood) - or just snap arrivals board - and they will usually let you on, at their discretion.
Afaik, Northern Rail have an official policy.
It is doable, problem comes if you had a cheapy ticket, then a delay moved you into the peak area, they might not like that.
One cannot argue with the basic principle that BHX is better positioned than LHR to be the country’s major hub. It is after all geographically central - simple as that.
One can and one will!
Centre of landmass and centre of fare yield are two entirely different concepts - the former (for England) being in Meriden, the latter no doubt being somewhere around Gerrard's Cross.
We need to get rid of this idea that the UK is "London centric", or that Brum is somehow losing out from government policy.
It is simple historical and geographical reality - London evolved as the biggest city, then it became a self-feeding circle. Paris is the same. Germany in this discussion is, frankly, utterly irrelevant - by all means compare Germany with the
US, but not with
us.
Various Govt ministers have been to BHX recently saying it is well placed for expansion.
So what! They have bought the sales pitch - take one grossly expensive high speed rail line, add in one mid table regional airport, and hey presto, you have London's 8th airport, all on a plate!
Given the need to claw back the investment, why would the HS2 operator want to be giving away through tickets to BHX at a knock-down price? The route won't even open until 5am, no good for the first wave!
Why would a long haul airline want to use an airport MOL hasn't even dreamed of calling London NW? If they can't get into LHR, they will settle for Gatters - and MOL will then storm off in a huff to wherever he can go (STN, LTN, SEN, MSE - wherever).
BHX will pick up a few crumbs from the London table. No more.
Right now they should forget about the fantasy, and focus on all those un-served European capital cities!