Viaduct bid unveiled for restoration of train line
GREAT CENTRAL SEEKS FUNDING FOR ITS SCHEME
BACKERS are being sought for the latest plan to reunite two halves of a railway.
Great Central Railway (GCR) has unveiled plans for a viaduct as part of its scheme to reunify the line between Leicester and Nottingham.
It will involve the construction of 200 metres of viaduct alongside 100 metres of embankment.
Malcolm Holmes, GCR’s general manager, said it had initially expected to build a 300-metre embankment, but spacing issues made that “quite complex”.
He said the new plan was slightly cheaper and would be “simpler to construct”. An application for the proposal is expected to be submitted “within a matter of weeks”.
If approved, the new line would also include two steel bridge spans, over a culvert and Railway Terrace Road, Loughborough.
The blueprints and designs for the viaduct project alone will cost GCR £500,000. Mr Holmes said these documents were vital in ensuring the 18-mile line was restored in full, for which £2 million already been raised.
However, he called on anyone else who can support the project to get in touch.
He said: “While we have £2 million already raised for the project, we want to protect as much of that fund as possible for actual building work.
“Our new appeal for £500,000 is to fund the vital next steps and get this epic project shovel ready.
“The more money we raise, the sooner we can build again and the more we can achieve.”
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