A meeting of philosophy and rail replacement buses

Ensuring the greatest happiness of the greatest number is the constant quest of Network Rail

- Simon Calder

Fixing Britain’s railways in the holistic sense is controversial.

I recently compiled a modest manifesto of how ticketing could be dragged kicking and screaming into the second quarter of the 21st century. Fixing the nation's railways in the sense of mending and modernising the infrastructure also causes many arguments, especially over a bank holiday.

From 8pm last night to 8am tomorrow, the southernmost 75 miles of the link connecting London King's Cross with Yorkshire, northeast England and Scotland will be closed completely, between the capital and Peterborough. The prospect of a rail replacement bus from Bedford, the Thameslink terminus on the East Midlands line from London St Pancras International, to Peterborough, will tip the most hopeful journey into misery. Rather than a 47-minute intercity journey, passengers must invest around two and a half hours and several handfuls of hassle.