South East and East Rail Consultation

New update on related rail matters:

New Thameslink Eastbourne service starting - prelude to
our call for Capital-Airport-Eastbourne (Resort) synergy and Polegate-Stone Cross direct curve for Ashford-Brighton shave 20 minutes end-to-end and Hastings-Ashford electrification infill and redoubling?
Please get to it in campaign and marketing terms: https://news.railbusinessdaily.com/in-the-news-16th-july-2025-latest-rail-news/

Please email your MP in support of these initiatives and for a study on Redhill Reform and reopening the direct East Croydon-Eastbourne Cuckoo Line as a modern relief capacity artery?

https://members.parliament.uk/members/commons?sort=1

Please respond to this consultation. We need more tracks for more trains and that must include local rail reopenings and more orbital rail links around M25/London to enable radial services from and to different parts of Great Britain offering seamless journeys to/from the South East, cutting volumes of traffic vehicles (people and goods) and lowering congestion, blight and emissions/deteriorating quality of life for South East Citizens.

See: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn9j930gypeo?xtor=AL-71-%5Bpartner%5D-%5BBBC+England%5D-%5Bheadline%5D-%5Bnews%5D-%5Bbizdev%5D-%5Bisapi%5D&at_bbc_team=editorial&at_format=link&at_campaign_type=owned&at_link_id=2D109338-4A6A-11F0-8417-8F99EA8F018F&at_link_type=web_link&at_link_origin=BBC_Cambridgeshire&at_medium=social&at_ptr_name=twitter&at_campaign=Social_Flow and also (especially): 

https://www.eastsussex.gov.uk/roads-transport/transport-planning/local-transport-plan/local-transport-plan-4/freight-rail-strategies?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=socialmedia&utm_content=east+sussex+county+council&utm_campaign=hootsuite_default_campaign_tracking&utm_term=1ff54c85-492c-4eee-ae6d-e052dded3135

BRTA supports local rail reopenings but qualifiedly:

1. Guildford-Horsham via Cranleigh (see attached)

2. Studies into reopening/new-building No. 1 above) and that of a new Polegate-Stone Cross direct avoiding line shaving 20 minutes off end-to-end journeys making rail more competitive and opening up new capacity for more diverse directly services to Eastbourne (a Cinderella shadowed by Brighton?).

3. Studies into the new-build of the Cuckoo Line and East Grinstead-Three Bridge and the former Pulborough line to avoid going into London for getting across the South East. £millions spent on upgraded roads including A24 and A27 and for what?! It exacerbates land-use and parking demand at resorts and needs more rails to offer competitive alternatives to guzzling roads and rubber on hard surfaces pollutes and affect public health - ending up at NHS waiting lists see: https://earthwatch.org.uk/new-report-widespread-toxic-tyre-pollution-harmful-to-all-life-is-entering-uk-rivers/

4. Direct curves from the Tonbridge and Guildford lines to Gatwick and a study into a new flyover linking Tonbridge and Guildford lines for passenger and freight to and from the Channel Tunnel. Capacity at Guildford either needs more land-take or reopening the Cranleigh-Horsham line for more by rail options including Gatwick via Three Bridges and Crawley and them to Guildford, Reading and beyond, Heathrow (new-build): https://heathrowrail.com/

and West London/Waterloo et al.

Others should adopt a top 10 of schemes ideally and give details for such a call beit traffic reduction, pollution, environment, land use, population growth or even mere preference and choice for rail?

Our events are on our website:

https://brtarail.com/events/

Please email your local MP with pro-rail suggestions qualified/loop into your response to the consultation and us: https://members.parliament.uk/members/commons?sort=1

Rt. Hon Sir Keir Starmer MP and Prime Minister talks about 'helping working people' whereas as British Prime Minister he should care about all people in a given society and do the utmost to reduce an underclass developing caught often between gaps in political spin and realities on the ground. More, better and affordable access to public transport enables more as per social mobility on the back of access to free education (all tiers) made accessible to all pockets and none; our transport agenda and sensitive social housing for people trying to leave home, our young people, seeking work, education and yes for families wanting affordable leisure travel, bus and rail need to come together services, ticketing and cost for low incomes say £21, 000 p.a and below to any kind of Welfare which needs arguably to be pegged to inflation as cost of living with everything else bites to leave little spending power. In short, whatever your views politically, it has to be made to add up for all, otherwise people fall through the net, face impossible barriers and more homelessness, which is not the sort of nation any of us want surely? So our focus on better, more and affordable public transport makes absolute sense for the well being of our society and we can export best results with best practise starting with these additional rail schemes surely?

BRTA CEO

ceo@brtarail.com