In message
, at
23:49:51 on Tue, 2 Dec 2008, MIG remarked:
The problem to my disordered mind is that Crossrail will have to be
duplicated by local diesel trains all the way to Maidenhead in order
to cover the bit from Maidenhead to Reading (which is a huge hub).
The reason is presumably to save on some miles of electrification

No, the reason is because Cross =rail's funding was hard to get, and
doesn't pay to get all the way to Reading, and in particular won't pay
for the remodelling of Reading that would get lumped in if Crossrail
were to go that far. What many people expect is for Crossrail and
Reading to get their works done from their separate budgets, and then
benefit from a "fill-in" from new money.
--
Roland Perry