Transport for The South East Transport Plan - please ask them to include our rail suggestions!

re: https://transportforthesoutheast.org.uk/our-work/transport-strategy/

ERTA calls to support and help with informing 

1. Rebuild/with realignment spaces, a new Polegate-Stone Cross avoiding line. This would shave 20 minutes off end-to-end Brighton-Ashford services along the south coast by rail. That would improve rail's relevance, competitiveness and court more diverse usage of rail. A27 is perpetually being upgraded and widened and yet its usage is synthetically driven by the long, slow, tortuous rail-based alternative. 

Our suggestion could rectify this. In addition, far from downgrading Eastbourne Station calling, you keep the slow stopper service but add a semi-fast non-stop. Eastbourne Station needs investment and to retain sidings and track, which currently are under-used. Scope and explore small to medium to other freight by rail like parcels and pallets. Scope and explore freight along a more joined-up south coast rail system which enables more. Also look at a better marketed specific London-Gatwick-Eastbourne (Capital-Airport-Resort) direct, semi fast, limited stop, top speed service which brings in and takes out based on specific quality trains, service and marketing. The sluggish 'survivor' current system and train service is not geared for this and so we need to wake up and see agencies and councils with MP's lead from the front, make the case, talk to industry and pepp up these windows of opportunity, not throw away in the name of development with a station but keeping the 'everything in and out of Eastbourne' rail problem, whilst principal roads bypass and do more?

2. Rebuild a Guildford-Horsham-Shoreham rail link with a new connecting 'direct link' to inform a Reading-Brighton direct semi-fast 'not via London' regional service, local stopper services based on Horsham interchange and also linking Old Oak Common Interchange with Heathrow, Guildford, Horsham, Crawley and Gatwick from the south. This would create capacity on other lines, free up local roads, bring Cranleigh back onto the rail network and cut all the bads associated with congestion, pollution, land-use parking demand and wasted time for domestic and business needs. It needs:

a. route protection with realignment spaces

b. an audit of what's there and what is needed

c. studies to make the wider regional travel business case and associated demands for wider and governmental consideration

d. get industry on board. 

e. court public awareness and support.

f. slew walk-way cum cycle paths for rail, land exists for all to be catered for with a little flexibility.

3. Electrify Third Rail the Redhill-Guildford-Reading line to include as part of the Thameslink scope network with East Croydon-Guildford for example as a semi fast on top of the existing stopper services. It is a third rail area, it makes sense to use existing, clean technology and rolling stock to save time, broaden dynamic appeal for wider audiences and fill more trains, declutter local roads and delays changing informs with a degree of inconvenience in needing to change trains and platforms for example.

A study is needed. New thinking is required. Talk to us, offer to lead and help us. 

Our role as a small voluntary association is to plant ideas, we need employed agencies and funded tiers of governance to lead and progress to mutual, wider public and environmental benefit. Otherwise more congestion is the order of the day. Previous studies only looked at Cranleigh as a terminal branch off Guildford than a through link between the south coast, Gatwick and Horsham and Reading/Heathrow for example. It is time to broaden horizons and give modal shift a chance from road to rail more. You can only do that if the rail joined-up infrastructure is delivered and progressing toward that goal included as discerned goals in plans now. Any absence is an oversight and must be rectified if any new development is to be sustainable and the effects properly managed.