Monday 5 June 2023

Llangollen Petition and other Wales and Borders Issues

Notice of rejection 05-06-2023
We rejected the petition “Support and Fund Mainline links to Llangollen Railway to Connect it to Ruabon and Bala” that you supported | Gwrthodwyd y ddeiseb “Support and Fund Mainline links to Llangollen Railway to Connect it to Ruabon and Bala” 
Yes, unfortunately the Welsh Government have rejected my Senedd petition, they strangely say it's not something's they deal with. This bewilders me since they accepted this petition to re-connect the North and South Wales rail link: 

But it's not all bad since we still have the original petitions to rely on, so we'll need to keep on building up the support via those petitions.

Your right, it's best to email the local councils and try and get Railfuture and other media outlets to give coverage and support for the principal idea so I will e-mail them the petitions so that they will hopefully give us their support. Thank you for your support.

I have now made my Llangollen Railway extension petition into a Senedd petition. Please could you sign it and share it with the other ERTA members to build up the support. 

Click this link to sign the petition: https://petitions.senedd.wales/petitions/245461/sponsors/new?token=QrPPsZfouqUkQl3GoQjI

My petition:

Support and Fund Mainline links to Llangollen Railway to Connect it to Ruabon and Bala

With Corwen Railway station now open, the next step for Llangollen Railway is for it to become a Community Railway Partnership line, and to then integrate it as soon as possible with an externally reinstated rail link over the 5 mile disused route eastwards through Trevor back to the mainline network at Ruabon. Then later to reinstate the 10 miles of line west from Corwen to Bala and onwards for a further 25 miles through Trawsfynydd to connect it to the Conwy Valley Line at Blaenau Ffestiniog.

Two areas of trackbed are now at imminent risk of being blocked off: these are the site of the former Acrefair Station, where a housing estate is planned to be built across and along the railway land (See details on pages 41-52 of this file: https://cl-assets.public-i.tv/wrexham/document/DC_Report_6_March_2017_Final.pdf), and just east of Llangollen Station where there is ‘The Four Great Highways’ scheme (https://www.denbighshire.gov.uk/en/community-and-living/community-development/levelling-up-fund/four-great-highways/four-great-highways.aspx) which plans to build landscaping and footpaths across and along the railway route. 

These could be avoided if Wrexham CBC and Denbighshire CC protect a 6-metre wide strip of land in their areas to allow for a railway reinstatement between Llangollen and Ruabon. Other portions of the route are generally clear to reinstate with relatively straightforward construction works and no obstacles that pose showstoppers to making the vision become reality.

Click this link to sign the petition:
https://petitions.senedd.wales/petitions/245461/sponsors/new?token=QrPPsZfouqUkQl3GoQjI

Please feed into our Shrewsbury Forum to make common cause and inform a loose team to work at these links including Oswestry-Gobowen. Shrewsbury Forum: Saturday 22 July at the Montgomery Tower, Lower Claremont Bank, Shrewsbury SY1 1RT 1pm lunch, 2-4pm business. Phone 01743-239080 https://www.jdwetherspoon.com/pubs/all-pubs/england/shropshire/montgomerys-tower-shrewsbury .Agenda via richard.erta@gmail.com and any further details via Mr Simon Barber T. 0208 940 4399 E. simon4barber@gmail.com 

Feel free to pass on. Venue may change if we get a glut of people.  We are nationwide in scope and aspiration, but are only as good as our members inform. Bristol Forum agenda attached. On the West Wales direct rail link, inclusive of Carmarthern to Aberystwyth, it would enable all-year-round access by rail, footfall and spend, sustainable transport options, possibly more freight by rail, more economic rails as feeding each other's networks and much more unforeseen gains. 

Yes, some houses need relocating and that is a difficult process, but they should never have been allowed to be built on a strategic railway course and at Aberystwyth, the example of whether a study could seek a new alignment or follow the old course would lend itself to see what new options could reasonably be done for example. 

Lampeter is a key settlement with St David's University and regeneration without land use for endless parking. Government gets a rail professional to suggest upgrades to the A487 whilst suggesting 'no business case' for reopening the local rail link linking similar end-to-end places! It is a choice and need pro-active engagement pro-affirma to a rail-based solution.





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