Please support our call for a new-build of the former Great Central Corridor to a modern railway twin-track solution. Going from West London alongside HS2 north of Aylesbury to east of Brackley new-build and veering north to the north of Brackley and ending up at Leicester Central (new-build) via and serving Rugby, Magna Park, Lutterworth and giving congestion relief and emissions reduction to M1 and creating passenger and freight by rail capacity more.
It needs investors and talent bringing together with the Government to take the project forward. Magna Park is one of the biggest industrial centres without a railway serving it in Europe!
Join BRTA and vote with your feet and wallets.
It is only pie-in-the-sky as long as people do nothing and the rot prevails! It would link with the Oxford-Cambridge East - West Rail and enable trains from Southampton and Wales and all in-between as well as via a new railway serving Heathrow, link with Guildford and possibly the Channel Tunnel. It starts here!
Please join in with us and be part of the picture!
When we talk of the Great Central and population spread, we in my opinion need to take into account the toll of two World Wars and the cull of men in particular to those generations. However, now the population has grown significantly in the 60 years since closure and we have a situation of pushes for development everywhere without new rail infrastructure. That means the impact will go on the roads, fuelling more roads and spiralling health related pollution issues.
Moreover the following can also be observed:
1. WCML south of Rugby will still have increased passenger and freight demand regardless of HS2.
2. M1 doesn't take much for 10 mile tailbacks, will only exacerbate.
3. Magna Park (one of the biggest industrial parks in Europe) and new-town expanded
Lutterworth are new markets not served by any railways.
4. Leicester is expanding and the Midland Main Line has many issues which need additional rail options for more by rail.
5. We are not suggesting religiously following every inch of course of old railway, rather the corridor needs re-railing in our view with a new-build interpretation to normal, conventional rail designs of say 125 mph for passenger and goods by rail more.
6. At the southern end you have Old Oak Common Interchange, East-West Rail (Oxford for Bristol, Southampton and South Wales corridors) and more options for Aylesbury.
7. Brackley is an expanding area, HS2 has been pushed through without any provision for a station, so a new line to the east with a Parkway Station (a bus link with Silverstone too) and heading north rather than HS2 North-West, would serve Woodford Halse, Willoughby, Southam/Daventry/A425 Corridor areas and a new South Rugby Parkway, new route to link with Leicester-Nuneaton and a new route to a new terminal station Leicester Central.
At this stage we are calling for general support, protection of route corridor space and for a study to look at it as a contingency going forwards. Relocations, compulsory purchase with compensation all has to be considered through the normal processes. This is common to most reopening of closed lines or new-builds as corridors have not been protected despite future generations potentially needing the rail-based transport choices they can offer?
If we do not act, chained to history, we ignore the future. Whatever HS2 offers end-to-end, it leaves much undone interim and enjoys £1 billion per mile investment whilst austerity seems to be for other postcodes on a range of issues including reopening restored rail links to places like Bideford, Witney, Ripon, Cranleigh, Bridport, Ross-on-Wye, Coalville and Keswick for example).
We need people to join BRTA and help us progress it more inch by inch to governmental support and ultimately adoption as they did with Greengauge. Investment in rail transport more, must be made nationwide, otherwise politics and postcode lotteries, mean comprehgensive rail choices are curtailed.
