Choo-choose Derby as the home of GB Railways, urges MP
SHE WANTS PEOPLE TO SCAN HER T-SHIRT
A DERBY MP is launching a campaign to bring the Great British Railways HQ to the city by going onto the streets to invite people to ‘ChooChoose Derby’ by casting their vote.
Derby North MP Amanda Solloway will be asking people to register their support by scanning the QR code she is wearing on her specially printed T-shirt and holding up on a poster.
Derby is one of six towns and cities on a shortlist which has been drawn up in the final stage of a nationwide search to seek a location for the headquarters of Great British Railways, a new organisation which will replace Network Rail in 2023.
Organisations across Derby and the wider East Midlands have already lent their support to the city’s case, but Amanda, who is back in the city full-time during Parliament’s summer recess, is now looking for grassroots support – and is taking action.
She said: “We have a tremendous case as to why Derby deserves to be the home for the Great British Railways but that won’t win us the contest alone, because it is understood the voting process will be integral to the final decision.
“I lent my support to the campaign way back when Derby City
Council originally launched its bid and I have cast my vote, but I want to get as many people as possible to cast their votes too.
“Can we get the whole of Derby to vote for their city? It’s a big ask, but I want people to literally scan me or go online with their phones to place their vote – we need people to be proactive.
“Derbyshire is still the heart of rail innovation, and the sector employs more than 11,000 people locally. If the new HQ was brought to Derby it would create hundreds of jobs and place Derby at the centre of the nation’s rail network.”
Designed to bring the task of running the railways under one roof, GBR will take control of everything from running stations to maintaining the track, operating the trains and selling tickets.
Derby is up against Newcastle,
Birmingham, Crewe, Doncaster and York, all of whom are canvassing votes from their own supporters ahead of when the deadline for voting ends on August 15.
The final decision will take the public vote into account alongside other information concerning how each location addresses a number of key criteria.
The outcome is expected to be announced later this year.