Rural railway lines, often heavily used by walkers, are under threat after yesterday’s decision by Transport Secretary, Alistair Darling, to launch a review of rural rail services in an attempt to make those that are currently least-used pay their way.
Closure of some lines will undoubtedly have an impact on walkers seeking to reach some of our most beautiful countryside, most dramatically in the Peak District where the Manchester to Buxton line is threatened, and in the Lake District where the Manchester and Oxenholme to Windermere line is under threat.
However, amid fears of Beeching-style swinging cuts to approximately 56 rural lines, or around 10% of the rail network, the Government have offered some hope of salvation. A strategy aimed at doubling the revenue generated by rural railways and reducing the costs of running them within five years is to be promoted.
However, Mr. Darling made it clear that should this fail the government would be left with little choice but to close lines for good, stating, “I’m not interested in the sentiment of running the railways. We’ve got to be hard headed about this.”
“There comes a point where, if a line is not working, it is not carrying people and its costs are not coming down, then of course you’ve got to look at that. We can’t be in the business of carting fresh air around the country”, he continued.
The threat of closures could prompt a significant backlash from rural communities, where these lines are seen as lifelines for those who use them. Their closure will almost certainly mean penalising those who cannot afford to run a car, and will lead to more car trips being made.
Pilot projects will run on an initial seven lines: the St. Albans Abbey line from Watford Junction to St. Albans; the St. Ives Bay line from St. Erth to St. Ives and the Looe Valley line from Liskeard to Looe in Cornwall; the Tamar Valley line from Plymouth to Gunnislake; the Grantham to Skegness line; the Penistone line from Sheffield to Huddersfield; and the Esk Valley line from Middlesbrough to Whitby.
