Guildford-Cranleigh-Horsham local-regional rail link needs your support

New Diagram - what we would like, really, really wish for!

Update at 07-12-24 North Downs Rail Corridor - making the most of an asset!

re: https://sacuksprodnrdigital0001.blob.core.windows.net/regional-long-term-planning/Southern/North%20Downs%20Line%20Traction%20Decarbonisation%20Strategy%20(2024).pdf

BRTA welcomes any information and inclusion in consultations regarding this and other rail lines in the area. Our feedback is as follows:

1. We regard rail as 'green' compared to aviation and roads-based solutions. It is often faster and every seat taken on a train is one less vehicle on the roads, helping reduce congestion, saving land use for endless parking demand and much more.

2. The North Downs Line has improved over recent decades and the introduction of semi fast services with fairly comfortable trains is innovative.

3. Our call is for a full third rail electrification, maybe in phases between Redhill and Guildford (one) and Guildford-Reading (two). This would enable additionally inclusion of Guildford and Reading in the Thameslink service network, offering a semi - fast service in addition to local stopper services and bring new flows of footfall and spend from South London/East Croydon to Guildford for example, rejuvenating footfall and spend in a town centre in a sustainable way.

4. We would welcome interest in our suggested rebuild of the former Guildford-Cranleigh-Horsham rail link to a modern rail standard to ease congestion on local roads, give more opportunities for rail travel, enable more trains to call at Guildford and go on to elsewhere, freeing platform access for other trains more, than idling. It needs route protection, coalition building, studying and working up - previous studies were based on a terminal branch, but apart from local feed and access to rail more, we see semi-fast links (new for rail) between Reading and beyond to Horsham, Gatwick and westwards via a new Arundel Curve to Shoreham (Portal/Resort) and Brighton and also Chichester and Portsmouth and between West London, Old Oak Common and Heathrow to the south (more routing capacity options) and vice versa, benefiting everyone in a sustainable way.

We welcome any interest or support and work with others to inform more and better for all. Thank you. 

Contact richard.brta@gmail.com to join our free email loop.

Dear All,

The British Regional Transport Association (BRTA) is a voluntary-based association and relies on a growing local-nationwide membership able to take local-regional responsibility to work together flexibly and compliantly with us to make progress with this much needed local rail link.

 

Nationwide and regionally, we should reasonably expect councils, regional bodies and central government to pick up on these opportunities and make progress and lead from the front. Instead we are highlighting them in the hope that key bodies and individuals can see the opportunity on and off the rail and work with us to bring it about. Good ideas and observation is not enough, we need collaboration and a joint effort to build the necessary coalitions, gather support and share the load and responsibility. BRTA has the power to facilitate, but it is local people upwards who have the ability to determine and push through this wonderful opportunity which will not last forever unless actions are taken now.

 

The following may be observed:

1.     BRTA is focusing on Guildford-Cranleigh-Horsham with an Arundel Curve for South Coast access to and from. If our effort is superseded by a larger body or campaign, they may do phases or a wide gamut with a new direct bridge over the Horsham-Arundel line and a new-build to Shoreham serving growing towns and populations between the two via the old route in addition to a curve for direct running into Horsham and on to the Arundel direction.

2.     Local commute and visitorship from and to Guildford, Cranleigh and Horsham as a local focus would be advantageous given our precious few resources.

3.     Regionally Reading and beyond to Brighton and Portsmouth respectively and a shuttle linking Gatwick-Three Bridges-Horsham-Guildford-Heathrow from the south, gives more flexibility.

4.     North Downs Line is not undermined, it is doing a roaring trade, but needs infill third rail electrification and Thameslinks from East Croydon to run semi-fast into Guildford and maybe extended to Reading as well. That in turn frees diesel units for strengthening and additional services elsewhere.

5.     Our AGM in July 2025 will be held at Guildford and we aim to have 2 principal speakers and all will be welcome to it.

6.     It is naïve to think ‘instant’ for such projects as this, they are incremental in a context of some hostility to notions of reopenings both within and outside the rail industry and government itself. For example the Office for Road and Rail (ORR) have a policy against local level crossings for reopenings, demanding expensive bridges and duck-unders for new-build. That puts costs up and is disproportionate when evidence exists to indicate that as long as roadside abuse and proper maintenance is done, level crossings 98% are a safe, cheap and useful alternative. Bridges get bashed and concrete can erode over time with concrete cancer. We need some balance and common sense here, otherwise costs spiral deterring good ideas and modal shift back to rail on the back of modal choice from local projects such as this.

7.     Please write/email to your MP’s and ask them to support BRTA where you live and encourage government likewise to review ORR’s policies and have a more case-by-case basis for assessing suitability of engineering local-regional conventional rail links and their designs. The nation stands to gain if we succeed! https://members.parliament.uk/members/commons 

Yours sincerely,

Richard Pill

BRTA CEO

richard.brta@gmail.com