Regional News

WESTERN

Evesham: A bid has been submitted to Great Western Railway’s Community Fund for bus services to Alcester and Redditch to start from the station, to provide a better-quality connection between the two railheads.

Ledbury: The redundant ticket office cabin at the Cotswold Line station has been turned into a community and sustainable transport gallery. Truro: A late-2023 date has been given for the closure of the 1899, 54-lever GWR signal box, along with Lostwithiel (1893) and Par (1879) - all as part of a £40 million modernisation scheme. Control of the area, which includes the Falmouth branch, is being transferred to Exeter.

EASTERN

Bourne: Bricks from the M&GN overbridge 234, which is being demolished to make way for housing, may be laid as an open square in a public park. Cross Gates: Welcome murals have been painted on the station ramp by a local artist and pupils of the nearby John Smeaton Academy. Improvements have also been made to the booking office entrance, and fencing has been repaired.

Newton Aycliffe: Durham County Council’s bid for £117 million worth of Levelling Up money for the region includes a public transport interchange on the outskirts of the town, and better road links to the Tees Valley Line station.

York: There were 119 local objections to the creation of the National Railway Museum’s new Central Hall. The complaints mainly concerned the lack of alternative routes for the disabled.

MIDLANDS

Brent Cross: The new station at Brent Cross West to serve the new town centre is progressing, with the canopies and roof in position. It is due for completion by December.

Clay Cross: North East Derbyshire District Council is to carry out a feasibility study into reopening the Midland Main Line station, to serve the growing population. The old one closed in 1967 and was demolished.

Oakley: Highfield Bridge, which carries road traffic over the Midland Main Line, is closed until September 2 to have its foundations reinforced.

Princes Risborough: August 15 marked the 150th anniversary of the opening of the GWR branch to

Watlington. Although closed to passengers in July 1957, the eastern section survives as the Chinnor & Princes Risborough Railway.

NORTH WEST

Bamber Bridge: Network Rail has installed a new footbridge over the East Lancashire line.

Blea Moor: Three derelict rail worker’s cottages next to the Settle-Carlisle Line signal box have gone on the market for £300,000. Last occupied in 2010, they are a 20-minute walk from a parking area at Ribblehead Viaduct and have no mains services.

Carlisle: The Railway Heritage Trust has awarded a grant towards turning empty space in a former parcels depot into a Regional Development Centre.

Headbolt Lane: Roads in Kirkby have been closed during August, for replacement of the bridge over County Road as part of construction of the new £80 million station just north of the existing Merseyrail terminus. It will be worked by battery-powered Class 777s when they arrive from Stadler later in the year.

Stoke-on-Trent: The station had to be closed briefly on August 2, after decorative stone finials on the roof of Platform 1 and the ticket office were

found to be loose. The buildings are Grade 2 Listed, so they have had to be sent away for repair.

SOUTHERN

Barnes: The disused side of the Thames Bridge, which dates back to 1849, may be turned into a walkway providing step-free access to Barnes Bridge station. The work will cost around £3 million, and if agreed will be completed by 2026.

Denmark Hill: Listed building consent is being sought to refurbish the Grade 2 Listed former stationmaster’s house that has fallen into disrepair.

Plumstead: Network Rail is set to start work on making the Southeastern and Thameslink station step-free, after three failed attempts to get planning permission since 2017. It has dropped the idea of replacing the original footbridge when the lifts are installed.

Shoreham: New uses are being sought for the 109acre former rail-served cement works. It closed in 1991 and has been used until recently to store motor coaches.

Southampton: The route of the suggested rail tunnel link to Netley is under Southampton Water, not the Solent.

ANGLIA

Kennett: The Cambridge-Bury St Edmunds line station will benefit from the construction of 500 new homes nearby.

Oulton Broad: Oulton Broad South station’s platform signage has been amended to promote the nearby Carlton Marshes wildlife area, a 15-minute walk away.

LONDON

Rotherhithe: The Brunel Museum has been awarded £1.85 million from the National Lottery, to restore the engine house and set up an exhibition. It will mark the 200th anniversary of the start of construction of the Thames Tunnel by Marc Brunel in 1825, and the achievements of his son Isambard. Shepherd’s Bush: London Transport Museum is organising public tours of the original Underground station, which was once the western terminus of what later became the Central Line. The dates are October 5-30.

SCOTLAND

Forsinard: The Far North Line was closed for a short time on the afternoon of August 1, when a road rail vehicle derailed on the section to Altnabreac. Inverness-Wick services were terminated at Helmsdale.

Gairlochhead: The Friends of the West Highland Line plans to convert the old signal box into a community room. The station building is also being refurbished.

Roxborough: The three 16-metre spans of the wrought iron footbridge straddling the Teviot Viaduct have been reinstalled at the site, following refurbishment paid for by National Highways. The structure is on the St Boswell-Kelso line (closed in 1964), and sections of it are now the Borders Abbeys footpath.

WALES

Bala: The Bala Lake Railway, the first conversion of a former standard gauge formation to narrow gauge, opened 50 years ago on July 17.

Llandrindod Wells: Transport for Wales is considering enhancements for the Heart of Wales Line station.

Milford Haven: Pembrokeshire County Council has submitted a bid for Levelling Up funding to improve the station.

Contributions for by far the UK’s most published column by the same author - now in its 41st year - are most welcome from all sources. Personal observations, society magazines, website printouts and live links, transport group newsletters and media cuttings (with dates, please) are sought to maintain topicality. Please email your contributions direct to hj@howardjohnston.co.uk, or rail@bauermedia.co.uk