Reopening of rail line ‘could be £155m cheaper’
THE reopening of the Carmarthen to Aberystwyth railway line is expected to cost significantly less than previously thought, a new report reveals.
West Wales rail campaign group Traws Link Cymru has published a study with new research into the potential reopening of the line.
The report, entitled A Strategic Rail Corridor for West Wales comes two years after the Welsh Government published its own feasibility study, citing no major obstacles to reopening and that the new railway would cost approximately £775 million.
The 2018 feasibility study was part of the Williams Rail Review which began the same year, looking at the structure of the whole rail industry and the way passenger rail services are delivered.
The review will make recommendations for reform that prioritise passengers’ and taxpayers’ interests.
In terms of the Carmarthen to Aberystwyth line, it broadly confirmed the findings of an initial scoping study carried out in 2015, which
said that 97% of the original trackbed was clear and that reopening was a realistic prospect.
Now, Traws Link Cymru’s further analysis highlights what campaigners describe as significant oversights by consultants Mott Macdonald, who produced the original report on behalf of the Welsh Government.
Traws Link Cymru chairman Adrian Kendon says: “There are important omissions in the report which, for example, failed to consider the condition of the three tunnels on the former route and which also underestimated catchment area populations.
“Our further work on the study reveals that once the enlarged catchment area around the proposed stations is taken to account, the cost-benefit ratio improves, and with modern construction methods, the cost of reopening the Aberystwyth to Carmarthen railway could be reduced to around £620 million, a figure 20% less than suggested in the Mott Macdonald report.
“We will now disseminate our report to Senedd and Westminster politicians. The bilingual report will also be made available to download from our new website, which we hope to launch later this autumn.”
The report also reiterates the social, economic, and cultural case for reopening the railway.
The line was closed as part of the infamous Beeching Axe in 1965.
Together with the closure of the Afon Wen to Bangor line, this closure has meant that for more than 50 years, people in Wales have had to cross the border into England to travel between the north and south of the country by rail.
Despite only taking approximately 90 minutes by car, anyone wanting to travel between Carmarthen and Aberystwyth by train, currently has to go via Shropshire, Newport and Cardiff — a journey of approximately six hours.
For the past 20 years, calls to reopen the line have intensified, led by Traws Link Cymru.
Last year MP Jonathan Edwards made fresh calls to reopen it.
Connecting the north and south of the country would revitalise the Welsh economy, said Mr Edwards, who represents Carmarthen East and Dinefwr.
Mr Edwards made the case for the line to run again at a parliamentary debate in Westminster.
While MS for Ceredigion, Elin Jones, said last
year that there is a “growing appetite” for the service between the towns, which in its heyday used to stop at more than 20 stations along its journey.
Town leaders in Carmarthen have long backed the calls for the line to be reinstated.
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “In our response to the Williams Rail Review, we identified the west coast line, including Aberystwyth to Carmarthen, as a key strategic corridor development.
“This was part of a clear, comprehensive and conclusive case for full rail devolution and a fair funding settlement.
“The UK Government is currently responsible for improvements to rail infrastructure and has still not responded to this review.
“Under their current spending plans a conservative estimate of the underfunding of Welsh railways between 2001 and 2029 is £2.4 billion – this must be addressed so improvements to our network can be made.
“We will consider the findings of the Traws Link Cymru report as part of our ongoing efforts to improve connectivity in the region and across Wales.”