Amlwch revivalists sign 99-year lease on branch
A MAJOR breakthrough in plans to reopen the mothballed Amlwch branch came on April 29 when the board of directors of the revivalist group Anglesey Central Railway Ltd (ACR) signed a 99-year lease on the 17½-mile rail corridor between Gaerwen Junction on the Bangor-Holyhead line and the coastal town.
Ending six years of detailed discussions and lengthy negotiations with Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, ACR formally completed the legal due process and now has a legally mandated and contracted lease for the corridor, which has the Network Rail engineering designation of The GLA Line.
A statement from ACR said: “We wish to express our sincere appreciation and gratitude to all members of Lein Amlwch and to those members of the community of Ynys Môn who have given their unstinting support during this extended period of negotiation.
“We would also wish to place on record and acknowledge the support received from various elements of the commercial and industrial sectors of the community and, coupled with these, the efforts of the island's political representative in the Senedd, who has been assiduous in advancing the case for the reinstatement of the operational railway.”
The line was opened in stages as an independent company from 1864-67 and was sold to the LNWR in 1876. Passenger services were withdrawn under the Beeching Axe in 1964 but freight continued until 1993.
In the first issue of Heritage Railway in April 1999, we reported on Anglesey Council's bid to buy the branch for preservation.
A 2009 report by Sustrans Cymru concluded that the branch could be used for a dual purpose heritage railway and mixed-use path. That year, the Welsh Assembly Government asked Network Rail to conduct feasibility studies on reopening the section from Bangor to Llangefni to stimulate economic growth, with the possibility of trains being extended further to Amlwch. However, nothing has yet come of the study.
In 2012, Network Rail granted a licence to ACR so its support group, Lein Amlwch, could begin clearing vegetation. Lein Amlwch also opened a small shop, cafe and heritage centre in Llanerchymedd's station building.
Another local campaign group, Lon Las Môn, proposed turning the corridor into a shared path for nonmotorised vehicles including walkers, runners, cyclists and horses.
As reported last issue, Ynys Môn MP Virginia Crosbie has lodged a bid for a £50,000 feasibility study into reopening the branch under the Department for Transport's (DfT)
Restoring Your Railways Fund, after taking advice from Menter Môn, a not-for-profit company providing solutions to the challenges facing rural Wales, the Welsh Government, Transport for Wales, and Anglesey Council.
An earlier bid to the fund was not accepted and the DfT asked for more information.
The Welsh Government has committed to match-funding the £50,000 if the bid is successful.