I rarely watch fiction.
I rarely or never watch reality shows.
This review makes me want to watch the whole series, despite its promise to be a blend of the two.

In my early uni years, late 1960's, BHP and others proposed a VFT with conditions that demonstrated absolutely that the project was about property development, not engineering or transport. From memory, they wanted the right to purchase any land they wished within 1km of the route and 10 km circle of the stations, absolute authority to rezone and develop it, and to flog the results.

Not surprising, it didn't get up.

The messages: (1)read the fine print and (2)watch the money trail.

VFT in Australia, by any name, is not about transport; it is about diverting public property to private hands, with the risks, downsides and consequences remaining with the people.

John - Mark Lawson here.. yes, you've reminded me I forgot to say anything about property development.. it is a main driver of some of the more idiotic proposals made over the years..

Steam trains?
Tell them they're dreaming!
Ships that fly?
Tell them they're dreaming!
Braking the sound barrier!?
Tell them they're dreaming!
A manned mission to the moon!?
Tell them they're dreaming!
Ships that sail under the sea!?
Tell them they're dreaming! And so it goes.
From the dawn of time, we've always had these self same experts, who as always, absolutely all the reasons why it shouldn't/couldn't be done or wouldn't work!
And had we listened to these so called (self proclaimed) experts, we would still be living in caves, running our food down with a stone on a stick!
I like really good satire. But let's not confuse what is possible and worthy projects, with pie in the sky stuff, or patently risible rubbishing.
Of course an east coast corridor rapid rail, would work and very well, on one of the busiest air routes in the world!
Absolutely no question whatsoever.
I'd invest my entire retirement nest egg!
But particularly, if we could get a Chinese built magnetron system, which currently has a top speed of around 900 KLMS PH!
And that's possible, nearly from CBD, to CBD!
What do you reckon? 2.5 hours from Sydney to Melbourne or Brissie? How long does it take now by air; or just to drive to the airport? And when a train runs out of power and stops,this little prospect of harm, whereas, when it happens at 40,000 feet, there's always a problem!
Its not the fall that hurts, but the sudden stop at the bottom.
And the religiously rubbished BHP proposal, ensured, even as a publicly funded project, it would be both affordable and profitably pay for itself!
During the last enduring decade long drought, ten'll get you a million, there were literally thousands of Farmers, wishing they had a block on the also much maligned Ord river scheme.
[Foreigners are queuing, to get their paws on such a visionary project!]
For mine, an expert is best explained as; an X is an unknown quantity, and a spurt is merely a drip under extreme pressure!
Rhrosty.

I wish that they'd build a VFT track along the East coast, when it inevitably failed and the tracks were sold for scrap or recycled to upgrade the existing rail network, the track bed could be tarred and used as a superb cycle-way.

Anyone remember when Sydney had trams, you know, those light rail things that are a current proposal.

Apparently they are going to tear up George St to lay tram tracks, wouldn't have been a bad idea to have left the ones that were there; trouble was that trams got in the way of cars so they had to go.

Funny that.