Stations North of Bedford and associated links
The English Regional Transport Association (ERTA)’s
predecessor organisation the Bedfordshire Railway and Transport Association
(BRTA) led the way following the demise of the idea of a station immediately
north of Bedford at various sites in the mid to late 1980’s at Cut Throat Lane,
Bedford, Oakley and Milton Glebe. These floundered for a variety of reasons.
BRTA organised meetings and did surveys and
reported these at the time to councillors, media outlets and via the old websites.
Our take was and remains that stations north of Bedford are needed as part of
and included with a new local station stopping service in addition to principal
limited stopper fast services. So electrification of the Midland Main Line
North of Bedford holds the prospect out for improve fast services and also the
reintroduction after 60 odd years of a local stopping service especially
between Bedford and Leicester, Corby, Peterborough and Melton Mowbray and back
via Syston to Leicester for example. Another arm could be the reopening of the
freight only Knighton-Burton line with new stations at Ashby de la Zouch and
Coalville, enabling Bedford-Burton – Derby by an alternative route.
Stations we
would like to see is as follows:
1. Oakley (on land between Highfield and Lowfield
land if development does not beat us to it).
Cut Throat Lane is considered too near to existing
Bedford Midland and now the bypass slices through the land formerly allocated
and is ill-judged in our view. Far better to have Oakley served off the A6 bypass slip roads, so no traffic through the villages. Of course, any traffic
which goes though Bromham and Oakley to get to it, should be directed to use
the new bypass which is what it is there for.
By spacing stations out you establish an even
pattern, create more loading and parking capacity. However, London bound
commuting is overcrowded and limited track and terminal spaces in central
London means we need to turn the map upside down and pin point alternative
routes and destinations to the London area such as:
a. Reopen the Dudding Hill Line (links with Acton,
Heathrow, Windsor and Eton, Southern Region and Reading/Thames Valley).
b. Electrify Bedford-Bletchley and integrate
services with Southern for Bedford-Watford (accesses the tube via the new
Croxley Link)
c. Utilise the Carlton Road tunnels to run directly
onto the Gospel Oak Line for North and East London and Thames Gateway.
d. Rebuild a new conventional rail link from
Guildford-Cranleigh-Horsham-Three Bridges and via Shoreham-Brighton for
alternative end to end Bedford/Midland Main Line- South Coast.
This may sound farfetched, but the current system
is creaking at the seams and something must give to accommodate more people
travelling by train and by giving choices and competitive price gains to bypass
London by rail frees up seats for those who must go to Central London.
2. Other
Stations North of Bedford which should be studied looked at and lands protected
for access roads, parking and growth should be:
a. Sharnbrook: Better road link off the A6 needed
and bus integration via Templers Way.
b. Wymington: Should have a station with southern
expansion of Rushden part of its catchment as Woollaston.
c. Irchester for Rushden could be dubbed ‘Irchester
and Rushden Parkway’. A separate rail linking Rushden with Irchester Station
could be looked at and maybe the preservation outfit could link up there akin
to Cholsey and Wallingford Lines.
d. Burton Latimer and Finedon combined station
north of Wellingborough. Ideally a new link north of Wymington loop would
traverse the Nene Valley and cut the curves at Wellingborough for more capacity
and faster movements. With diversity you can have plenty of trains to serve
plenty of principal places and also bypasses to serve outlying areas which are development
sites now. New station would serve both communities and draw off the A6 with
links to Irthingborough for example.
e. Desborough. A new site is required and this
needs to be looked at carefully. It was suggested a new curve linking Midland
Main Line North with the Corby line would enable a Leicester commuter orbital
loop line with Melton Mowbray being the northern arcing to it.
f. Kibworth – a growth area needing a station
between Market Harborough and Wigston Junction.
g. South Wigston Midland Main Line to compliment
the local halt on the Leicester-Nuneaton Line.
3. Infrastructure:
A Kettering-Birmingham commuter service could run direct via the Leicester
south curve to give alternative commutes to just London, Bedford, Luton and
Leicester. A new ‘Manton Curve’ could be looked at for
Kettering-Corby-Peterborough, although a great way round, would enable
utilisation of common train stock on a loop from London St Pancras
International Thameslink subsurface station-Peterborough and loop back via Bedford.
Tracks between St Pancras and Brackfriars are
designed for 4 12 coach trains per hour x 24 hours per day x 7 days per week.
Clearly operations nor lifestyles are not there yet! Everything is in a context
of growth and more options for people is a healthy thing, than just chucking
£billions at London and leaving cross-country routes and choices neglected or nonexistent
by rail, which locks-in congestion to trunk road systems and urban areas
putting pressure and stress of cost management systems to stem urban parking
and land use balances.
Conclusion: This
list is not exhaustive but shows that the strain and conflict could be eased
with these measures seen in the round. They compliment, not detract other
schemes we are promoting like the Cobbler Line/South Midlands Link and
East-West Rail for example. Ideas such as reopening part of the old
Bedford-Hitchin line with a western flank bypassing Shefford and running
directly to loop the Luton Airport, lines off to the Hitchin Flyover and
linking the Midland Main Line at the Toddington/M1 area and south of Luton
Hills onwards for Harpenden should be seen as separate schemes, studied
separately and a contribution from the Airlines and Airport for studying and
making the case should be expected. In all this, capacity for freight and
de-cluttering our roads, is a prime task the railways need to be given and
Franchises, if not abolished, incentivised to be lead players in nurturing
these projects, not just day to day operations and pattern maintenance, when
clearly it is creaking at the seams and sweating as a system of basic
operation. Something has to give and ERTA takes the view that expansion and
more railways is the answer, not more of the same dressed up ever more cogently
dubbed ‘modernisation’, which has de-manned stations, eroded passenger service,
attention and care to a security and bureaucratic system which delivers mixed
messages, inconsistent services and fares!
What you can
do: If you agree with any or all of what we are expressing here you can:
a. Join ERTA – every member helps make us a louder
shout for more of what we may wish for.
b. Offer time and talent – if you want to get
involved we have volunteer opportunities and whilst we welcome reliability and
enthusiasm, we welcome any special focus’ or skills.
c. Area Reps convene meetings, gather people
together, inform teams and help move projects along. It could be a new station,
it could be a new piece of railway. It can start with you, as all progress and
advocacy of improvement must.
d. Join our email loop, it is free, no obligation and
makes for news and audience support network build: richard.erta@gmail.com
