Notes from ERTA Meeting Great Central Re-Railing Project/Corridor 29-01-2021 15.00 hrs.
Present: Cllr Rupert Frost, Colin Crawford, Simon Barber, Cllr David Bill, Owen O’Neill, Richard Pill, Harry Burr, Cllr Peter James, Kathy Keeley and Edward Blackman.
1. Chairman’s Welcome: Simon duly opened
the meeting with his one liner of introductory.
2. Apologies for absence: Chris Heaton Harris (MP for Daventry and
Government Rail Minister), Cllr Richard Auger of Northants CC, Cllr Martin Tett
of Bucks CC, Cllr Tim Mills of Aylesbury Vale, Mr James Tierney of Maritime Transport
and Mr Mike Reed.
3. The need to save and re-rail the
corridor with deviations where blockages cannot be overcome: Richard explained
that ERTA’s goal is to get people to join and inform a team of assistants under
Simon to nurture the project along, trackbed watch, protect the route as much
as possible from piecemeal development threats and court professional and
political support as much as possible, who in turn are to invest in studies and
take it on to the next phase towards delivery. People were encouraged to let
Simon have their details and ideas of who else to contact for his database.
4. The need for studies, BCR Listing and
Business Case firmed up: Owen O’Neill said we should wait until England’s
Economic Heartland (EEH) complete their passenger study phase 2 looking at
transport demand in various nodes along this corridor. It is due to report in
April 2021 and includes south of Rugby. Census figures were also mentioned.
Cllr David Bill said we have a plethora of depots springing up, some rail-connected
but generate many lorry movements as well and that was a concern. Owen
explained to us what the Golden Triangle loosely meant consisting of
Lutterworth-M1, M6, M69.
Peter James mentioned that Magna Park
was a development which is near the GC cordon and was not there as an example
when the Rugby-Leicester lines were closed. Owen then gave a useful look at his
paper to be published and diagrams of Rugby-Narborough via Magna Park using the
old Midland route out of Rugby. It was said about the ownership of the corridor
through Rugby and the loss of the old viaduct. This is a setback, but on the
other hand economies of scale are that were it HS2 for example, they would
think nothing about putting a new one in.
4. Route SWOT – Strengths, Weaknesses,
Opportunities and Threats: This was deferred to elsewhere and to wait for EEH’s
study. It was stressed that unless we can raise enough people to trackbed
watch, we cannot have intelligence on development threats and the need to
protect the corridor was vital. We need local councils on board as well as
Government and other agencies.
5. The need for a loose coalition of
reliable volunteers to work together and share roles
- let Simon have your details for his
database: See item 3.
6. Area focuses:
a. Calvert-Brackley-Woodford Halse
b. Banbury-Woodford Halse
c. Woodford area to Willoughby-Barby and
into Rugby
d. Rugby-Magna
Park-Lutterworth-Narborough for onwards to (freight Knighton) and passenger (Leicester).
These were put on hold until EEH report,
showing what demand. Lutterworth has 10, 000 population and is expected to
grow. It is also where the east-west A14 from Felixstowe meets M1 and M6
corridors. See note below *
7. Local, conventional rail link with
passenger and freight in scope from Southampton/Bristol-Oxford-Rugby-Leicester
in scope: Discussion on local, regional and wider national implications was
discussed. On the one hand HS2 is expected to create capacity down the West
Coast Main Line (WCML), whereas a bottleneck existed between Didcot and Oxford.
Reading was also cited (freight from Southampton for example) as getting stuck
on the cushions at the curve from Basingstoke to the Didcot main line. Discussion
was had on whether the Bucks CC and Windsor Link idea of reinstating the Bourne
End to High Wycombe line with Grendon-Calvert (GC) would provide more
flexibility of operations to ease things? Likewise, once off main line tracks
north of Oxford, GC link provides extra capacity so may relieve going via
London or Birmingham tracks more and attract new as yet not being done new to
rail from along the line and end-to-end wherever to wherever via these metals.
It was also discussed about intermediate locations and stations. HS2 is a fast
line and won’t provide a station at Brackley for example, so the scope for a
domestic line alongside HS2 which does, remembering Brackley has A43 and
Silverstone orbits as well as a growing place in its own right. Likewise,
Woodford Halse, Southam-Daventry via the A425, which GC intercepts half way
roughly with possible Parkway Station opportunities. North of that with
Willoughby-Rugby/Barby-Rugby Midland needs specific studies on various aspects.
Demand is one, engineering and inclusivity scoping another – the re-railing of
growing communities, bringing rail access closer.
Warwickshire County Council is
apparently doing a Public Transport Survey – Simon to follow up and report
back. RFI = Rail Freight Interchanges. Colin offered to talk to Maggie Simpson
of the Rail Freight Group (RFG). It was also recommended he and Simon talk with
Mr Andrew Pritchard of the East Midlands Transport Group of Councils.
8. Getting bigger fry on board:
a. developers: Gazeleys was mentioned.
DB Tritax Symmetry – lorries part, if they are focusing on rail east-west that
could be Liverpool and East Coast, but lorry movements could hit M1 for north-south
as no rail choices exist between Leicester-Nuneaton and Rugby for example,
which is a strategic gap in the rail network.
b. rail industry/business people: Colin
and Simon would seek a meeting with Chiltern to try and see what comes of it.
East-West Rail are toying of dropping their Claydon-Aylesbury arm and so
someone else may wish to fill it passenger-wise, given Calvert is to be
developed to new town size. Could it be that Chiltern could aspire a domestic
rail (or build a coalition) to re-rail Brackley alongside HS2 as a domestic
line with Parkway Station for catching A43, Silverstone (bus link) and growing
Brackley commute options which could negotiate running to or having a
connecting station with East-West Rail? So, if we got Rugby-Narborough and
Aylesbury-Brackley, the ‘gap’ between then then intensifies to get re-instated
rail corridor.
c. Political will at all tiers: Chris Heaton
Harris MP for Daventry and Rail Minister as well as other MP’s along the
corridor who can sponsor Westminster Meetings. Simon manages a database for the
ERTA Westminster Team to work on these matters as well as a Government
stipulated rail corridor protection initiative. Needs more people and via Zoom
under present circumstances, to be operationalised now. Guildford-Horsham and
the canal threat was mentioned as another example of trackbed vulnerability.
Once lost, locks growth into roads and that is why GC also has credentials as
providing a rail choice to roads.
d. public: Please recommend ERTA to
others, to join as a member, to attend meetings like today and grow our teams.
9. Appointment of any volunteers and for
what/where/how – answerable to Simon and the Executive Committee (EC): There
were none currently.
10. Any other pre-notified business: There was none except to notify next Zoom Meeting for GC Matters was 12 March 2021 15.00 hours. Would enable updating notwithstanding EEH’s later date of delivery.
Note from item 6*: Midland route out of Rugby/GC through Rugby or variations takes on the western side approach to Leicester of the M1 corridor. Northampton-Market Harborough with a widened base for footpath and railway corridor takes on eastern side of M1 approaches to the Leicester area. We must support both for their own merits, reducing road congestion, traffic and informing modal shift is the name of our game for good social, environmental and economic reasons. Yes, Northampton-Rugby-Leicester may be advantageous asking why we need another line for purposes of optimising demand, but there are other local-regional reasons why we need both.
Please note, it is ERTA’s goal to see the re-railing as we are
convinced it has merit, that is not up for discussion. Finding means-ways and
people to get it delivered is the next step. Northampton rail matters are for
the meeting 19-02-2021 15.00 hrs via Simon Barber T. 0208 940 4399, E. simon4barber@gmail.com
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