Proposal to Re-open the Honeybourne - Stratford line

[whole diary]

[bleeder4]

From this week's Evesham Journal http://www.eveshamjournal.co.uk/news/5069772.Scheme_to_restore_rail_line_proposed/
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"A proposal to reopen the line from Stratford through Long Marston and Honeybourne towards Cheltenham, are part of a raft of plans detailed in Network Rail^s latest Route Utilisation Strategy.

The report states that the route could be opened to freight traffic and passenger services permanently as a relief to existing rail lines that are approaching full capacity.

If the plans go ahead it would mean passenger services returning to the route for the first time in about half a century"
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I suspect this won't really get off the ground, what with the Redoubling project. I doubt the greenlight will be given to another substantial engineering project in such a short space of time.

It would also involve substantial work at the station and the surrounding B roads, to accomodate the extra traffic the new line will attract.

[Electric train]

Not quite true there has been some jounolistic hype see http://www.gwsr.com/news/latest-news/'speculative'-plans-for-the-honeybourne-line.aspx

NR^» (Network Rail - home page) have made passive allowance in the RUS^▸ (Route Utilisation Strategy) at Honeybourne for The GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) Honeybourne Line future use of the station should they extend beyone Broadway.

[willc]

Before going on about journalistic hype, I would suggest you actually read what is said on this topic in the consultation responses on the RUS^▸ (Route Utilisation Strategy) submitted by DB^» (Deutsche Bahn - German State Railway - about) Schenker and the Rail Freight Group, especially about the Honeybourne-Long Marston-Stratford section. I will even give you the links. On the DB Schenker one, see pages 14 and 29. In the RFG one, see point 13 on the third page.

http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/rus%20documents/route%20utilisation%20strategies/great%20western/consultation%20responses/d/db%20schenker.pdf

http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/rus%20documents/route%20utilisation%20strategies/great%20western/consultation%20responses/r/rail%20freight%20group.pdf

The ideas are now listed in the RUS as unfunded aspirations, which wasn't the case in the draft version, and I believe this does give proposals some kind of official status when it comes to seeking funding in the longer term. And no-one is suggesting it would be anything but long term. Long-term thinking is the whole point of an RUS.

It's up to you to decide whether the openly expressed opinions of two respectable organisations should just be ignored by us hype-merchants but remember, it's just five years since the SRA^» (Strategic Rail Authority - about) said in the last Great Western RUS there was no case for redoubling the Cotswold Line...

[inspector_blakey]

(Tongue-in-cheek mode firmly on...I'm typing this with a smile on my face, it's a joke, meant in fun, please don't take it too seriously, flame me etc: have I made this clear enough?? Just in case I'll type a line of these  and some of these too  and maybe one or two of these  )

After all, the fourth estate would never publish over-hyped nonsense about the railways, would it...?

Just to be on the safe side

[Electric train]

Willc I agree with you that the RUS^▸ (Route Utilisation Strategy) mentions the Honeybourne Line and it may well be an aspiration of DB^» (Deutsche Bahn - German State Railway - about) etc to have it as an additional route, the route from Cheltenham to north of Broadway is own by GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway), not saying that fright and service trains could not operate on privately owned infrastructure my point was that news papers had made it as a given that this were firm plans.

 

[willc]

my point was that news papers had made it as a given that this were firm plans.

The original Echo story quotes a Network Rail spokeswoman as follows at the start of the fifth paragraph, so it's hardly buried. And in the web version at least it was headlined 'Honeybourne Line back on track?' Question marks tend not to indicate certainty.

She said: "This is an aspiration rather than a definite plan at this stage."

A point which was repeated, citing Network Rail again, in the follow-up story on the GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) reaction. I'm not sure how you can say that means the newspaper was indicating it was a firm plan.

In any case, both DBS^» (Deutsch Bahn Schenker - UK^▸ (United Kingdom) website) and the RFG are clearly far more interested at this stage in the Honeybourne-Stratford section and the possibilities of a quieter route with more pathing opportunities than Oxford-Banbury-Leamington, never mind the possible provision of a fast passenger link between Oxford and Stratford, two of the biggest tourist destinations in England, as well as a third Worcester-Birmingham route, which would give Evesham better rail links to the West Midlands and linking Worcester with Warwick and Leamington.

And while the GWR may have a point about Network Rail not telling them it was including the mention of the Honeybourne-Cheltenham part of the line in the RUS^▸ (Route Utilisation Strategy) document, they know full well - as they acknowledge - about the notion of bringing the route back into the national network and have done for about a decade, since when I was working for the Echo around 2000 we ran a story then about EWS^▸ (English Welsh & Scottish Railway Ltd, now known as DB Schenker Rail (UK)) floating the same ideas as DB^» (Deutsche Bahn - German State Railway - about) Schenker did during the RUS consultation last year.

It's not as if preserved railways are not used for freight traffic anyway, eg military vehicles to Redmire and Dereham, traffic in the past from a private siding in Bodmin and the Weardale Railway's current proposal to move opencast coal. Honeybourne would be a different case, since it has potential as a strategic route - something that saw it last into the 1970s even though all local traffic was long gone.

PS: inspector, to quote Ronald Reagan during a 1980 US presidential election debate - there you go again. When it comes to accuracy and clarity, I could mention scientists working on climate change. There, I've done it.

[willc]

The Shakespeare Line Promotion Group has published a report on the case for reopening the line between Stratford-upon-Avon, Long Marston and Honeybourne.

Stratford Herald report here http://www.stratford-herald.com/mainstory.php?ID=2462
Pdf of report here http://www.shakespeareline.com/downloads/arl_case.pdf

[eightf48544]

With hindsight this is one of the post Beeching closures that perhaps shouldn't have happened.

Gives scope for a Birmingham circle for stock utilisation. Snow Hill Kidderminster, Droitwich, Worcester, Eversham, Stratford and back to Snow Hill either via Shirely or Solihull.

In my area East/West and Bourne End-Wycombe would give Buckinghmashire a superb Rail Network.

It would link all the major centres of population. From Slough/Maidenhead to High Wycombe, Ayesbury up to Milton Keynes on the North/South axis.

Plus Oxford/Bicester to Milton Keynes and possibly Aylesbury (with reversal) and give alternative routes to Oxford/Bicester from Maidenhead 

[53808]

I would agree that there is a 'degree of interest' in a possible Stratford - Honeybourne reopening within the industry, although I don't think anyone realistically expects it to be anything other than a longer-term possibility at this stage.

I've heard much less talk recently, however, about Honeybourne - Cheltenham, although the benefits of a direct link to the G&WR at Honeybourne will not be lost on main line charter operators, in the hopeful event that the heritage line eventually makes it to Honeybourne.

[anthony215]

Sadly whilst I think this scheme like many others is a good idea, it will always come down to money.

I think it will be great for the GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) to reach Honeybourne and it will make it easier for those of us who travel to the railway using Public Transport

[stebbo]

There was talk, in the context of the proposed "new town" at Long Marston, of re-opening Long Marston to Honeybourne, although reopening to Stratford would seem more sensible as, I guess, more people around Long Marston would be likely to work around Birmingham. But is there now enough room to get the line back into Stratford since they built the ring road?

[willc]

Would that it were as grand as a ring road... but the answer to your question is yes, there is still room to put in a single track alongside the road on the section from the former Evesham Road level crossing through to the edge of town.

[ChrisB]

Does anyone know whether the local authority has reserved that stretch for transport use (rather than housing)

[willc]

Sorry Chris, not with you on that. The section from Evesham Road to the edge of town is now a road, with, as I said, room for a rail track to be slotted in as well if such a thing were ever needed again. And the rest of the trackbed from Evesham Road to the station is hemmed in by housing and used as a public path, so not suitable for development anyway.

[ChrisB]

ok, now I understand. How long would the single track be then?