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Topic: The future of passenger trains - linking Labour constituencies? (Read 5568 times)
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Graham Ellis
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Have a look at a railway map of Great Britain, and you may feel there's something of a concentration of passenger railway stations and a network of lines in Labour held areas, whereas yellow and blue areas have a thin train service. Perhaps that's natural because of the difference between urban and rural areas, but I am mindful that certain current services such as Swansea to Shrewsbury have survived because of the politics. "It runs through six marginal constituencies" is what's been said about them Central Wales line. Transport 2000 have just launched a "Growing the Railways" campaign. See http://www.transport2000.org.uk/news/maintainNewsArticles.asp?NewsArticleID=324and I note a number of projects / aspirations that I would fully support in there. But I'm alarmed by what they've left out; in the South West area, they include Exeter and Bristol only - no mention of some of the opportunities in Cornwall, nor schemes such as Frome to Radstock, nor our own TransWilts. A Transport 2000 member wrote to me that "I tried to interest them in Melksham fo this campaign but to no avail ...". I appreciate that they were looking for just over a dozen examples for the press launch, but they've done themselves no favours in that (as far as I can see) all but two of those examples are for areas where the passenger traffic to be supported would be for residents of labour marginals. It seems that there are no level playing fields in this game! |
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Lee
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But I'm alarmed by what they've left out; in the South West area, they include Exeter and Bristol only - no mention of some of the opportunities in Cornwall, nor schemes such as Frome to Radstock, nor our own TransWilts.
A Transport 2000 member wrote to me that "I tried to interest them in Melksham fo this campaign but to no avail ...". I appreciate that they were looking for just over a dozen examples for the press launch, but they've done themselves no favours in that (as far as I can see) all but two of those examples are for areas where the passenger traffic to be supported would be for residents of labour marginals. It seems that there are no level playing fields in this game! The following examples appear to have been missed out as well , Graham  Woefully inadequate Newquay train service. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/160.stmVirtual closure of Pilning station. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/435.stmRestored passenger service for Portishead. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/643.stm |
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Graham Ellis
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Indeed ... but you're looking at rail issues in Lib-Dem and Conservative strongholds there, Lee, so they didn't make the T2000 lists.
I wasn't (at this point) attempting to list all possible candidates for support in the South West, but just examples.
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Lee
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Here are some more impartial proposals from "Growing the Railways" (links below.) http://www.transport2000.org.uk/news/maintainNewsArticles.asp?NewsArticleID=325http://www.transport2000.org.uk/news/maintainNewsArticles.asp?NewsArticleID=327"East Lancashire to West and North Yorkshire links – would de-congest roads and regenerate surrounding areas. A key missing link is an 11.5 mile stretch between Skipton and Colne, which would bring much-needed social and economic benefits and revive the fortunes of Colne and nearby areas." http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/453.stm"Reopen the link between Malton and Pickering ─ to provide a direct link from York to Whitby, complementing the existing service from Middlesbrough and the North." http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/504.stm"Unblock the Lake District – the Lake District is gridlocked and blighted by traffic for a major part of the year. Upgraded rail and public transport would bring urgently needed relief. The Penrith to Keswick railway, a line through the Lake District National Park, desperately needs reopening and would provide access to the heart of the Lakes." http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/647.stm"Improve rail and freight access to the Port of Tyne and along the Tyne Valley trans Pennine route ─ to improve rail freight opportunities and reduce HGV traffic on the road network." http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/319.stmNo mention of Settle - Carlisle..... http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/520.stmhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/628.stmhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/454.stmhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/127.stmA source who has been extremely helpful regarding Melksham and other issues recently reminded me that there are similiarities between Melksham station and Wetheral station , which is the most westerly station on the Tyne Valley Line. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wetheral_railway_stationAs the link above states : "The station was closed during the Beeching Axe but later reopened on an unstaffed basis." Here is a link to the current bus timetable for Wetheral. http://www.stagecoachbus.com/timetables/Service75from08May04[1].pdf Page 76 of the North East Regional Planning Assessment. "More selective stops at stations on the Tyne Valley route to improve the speed and frequency at the better used stations and to reduce the delays caused by stopping at the least used locations, and with the potential for bus/rail integration at Hexham to give better links from the surrounding area to Newcastle." The map on Page 39 shows the daily number of passengers for each station in the area. The map on Page 42 shows the daily passenger trips on each section of line in the area. Both are low on the western section of the Tyne Valley Line , and will get lower if the service is modified as described. Page 88. "The Tyne Valley route is a double track railway open on two long shifts but closed from approximately midnight to 06:00 each night. It can convey RA10 (25.5 tonne) axle load traffic and W8 gauge container traffic (8'6" containers). There is roughly an hourly service from Carlisle to Newcastle operated by Northern Rail, but also including four services contained within the ScotRail franchise and operating through to south west Scotland. Most of the Northern services continue beyond Newcastle to Middlesbrough via Sunderland and the Durham Coast. This is supplemented by an hourly service between Hexham and Sunderland and additional trains between MetroCentre and Newcastle. The Tyne Valley line is used by some Anglo-Scottish freight and trains to/from industries in Cumbria and there are approximately 13 freight paths a day in each direction over the Tyne Valley. It is also used as a diversionary route when there are blockages to either the East Coast or West Coast Mainlines." As you can see from Page 7 , figure 10 of the link below , the Tyne Valley line is projected to achieve high-level growth to 2015. http://www.networkrail.co.uk/documents/3108_Route%209%20North%20East%20Routes.pdf"Coal traffic is to be diverted off the Settle to Carlisle line and onto the Newcastle to Carlisle line from time to time to allow planned track works. As a result, the volume of freight traffic along this section will significantly increase when such diversions occur." Here are some relevent links. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/4776296.stmhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/4765883.stmBelieve it or not , the Settle-Carlisle line is also projected to achieve high-level growth to 2015. this is shown on Page 6 , Figure 9 of the link below. http://www.networkrail.co.uk/documents/3121_Route%2023%20North%20West%20Rural.pdfOne of the things that the Settle - Carlisle , Tyne Valley and Melksham lines all have in common is that their stopping passenger train services appeared in the withdrawal or modification lists of the original Beeching Report and nearly all of the stations on them were listed for closure. |
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Graham Ellis
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Oh come on, Lee ... some of those are scarcely "marginal"! Tony Cunningham has a majority of over 6,000 in Workington, for example. It would need a swing of around 9% to unseat him. For that to happen, he would need to be associated with a government that was deeply unpopular over a lot of other issues ... one that had put in huge tax rises and got us involved in an unpopular and expensive war, for example.
Many good schemes listed - the tragedy is in the ones that are NOT listed and are as good, or better, cases.
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Lee
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I believe that the MP you refer to lost 6.3% of his vote and had a 4.3% swing against him , Graham.
That was in 2005..........
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Lee
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Unfortunately , there have been no new "Growing The Railways" proposal announcements for over 2 weeks now. However , I am sure that you will be interested in the link below , entitled "Darling pledges support for Transport 2000’s campaign to expand rail" (March 2006) http://www.transport2000.org.uk/platform/maintainNewsArticles.asp?NewsArticleID=52Quote from the above link : “Of course, the proof will be in the pudding but this is good news. Together with other members of the Growing the Railways coalition, we will continue to ensure that the right ingredients go into future Government plans. Let’s hope that Alistair Darling sticks to his words and stays aboard the great journey towards a decent rail network.” Here is a link also dated March 2006. http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/actionnetwork/F3641215?thread=2493850Quotes from Alistair Darling : "We cannot be in the business of carting fresh air around the country," "Any healthy, confident business should be prepared to look at the services it provides and consider where there is demand and how best to meet it." "That's not Beeching - it's common sense. And it frees up trains and resources for where they are needed to meet the real demands of a growing network." |
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Lee
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It has been brought to my attention that I have failed to mention "Growing the railways in the East Midlands" which was released just over 2 weeks ago. Many apologies , here is a link. http://www.transport2000.org.uk/news/maintainNewsArticles.asp?NewsArticleID=328"Improving Loughborough station – although this is the fourth busiest station in the East Midlands, it has poor station facilities and needs urgent and drastic investment and improvement, such as: Longer platforms – current ones can only cater for four-car trains Lifts to access the platforms where two third of trains call Disabled toilet facilities A bigger booking hall as passengers often have to queue outside." Andy Reed lost 8.3% of his vote and had a 5% swing against him at the last general election , thus turning Loughborough into a tight Labour marginal (link below.) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/383.stmI made a point of looking out for Harborough , which is threatened with service cuts (link below.) http://www.savethetrain.org.uk/forum/index.php?topic=342.msg991#msg991Oh dear. No mention for a station situated in a Conservative - held seat , where the Liberal Democrats are the main challengers (link below.) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/299.stm"Major service improvements at Lincoln – the University in Lincoln has grown to a major force in Lincoln in the past 10 years and rail is an important transport option for many students, yet the rail service to and from Lincoln hasn’t really improved from before the University was built. More and frequent services are needed." Better news though , for Lincoln , where MP Gillian Merron suffered a 8.5% drop in her vote plus a 5.1% swing against her in 2005 (link below.) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/373.stmHang on a minute. Thats not THE Gillian Merron , Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport with responsibility for Aviation , London , Mobility and inclusion , Corporate issues , Local, regional and sub-regional transport , Traffic management , Buses and taxis plus Climate change and green issues , is it? (link below.) http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_about/documents/page/dft_about_611627.hcspGood lord! So it is |
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« Last Edit: October 15, 2006, 03:09:43 PM by Lee »
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Graham Ellis
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With a political system such as ours, where an MP who serves a particular geographic area is also given responsibility for an aspect of public transport in general, it's all too easy to shout "unfair" when they do something that helps their own area. And especially so with big transport schemes which by their nature are either "on" or "off" and cannot be done 1/635th in each part of the country.
However, once a general pattern is established of schemes being given out of proportion to areas in which the goverment is clinging to an MP's seat by its finger tips, then the cry of "unfair" is justtified.
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Lee
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"Major service improvements at Lincoln – the University in Lincoln has grown to a major force in Lincoln in the past 10 years and rail is an important transport option for many students, yet the rail service to and from Lincoln hasn’t really improved from before the University was built. More and frequent services are needed." Better news though , for Lincoln , where MP Gillian Merron suffered a 8.5% drop in her vote plus a 5.1% swing against her in 2005 (link below.) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/373.stmHang on a minute. Thats not THE Gillian Merron , Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport with responsibility for Aviation , London , Mobility and inclusion , Corporate issues , Local, regional and sub-regional transport , Traffic management , Buses and taxis plus Climate change and green issues , is it? (link below.) http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_about/documents/page/dft_about_611627.hcspGood lord! So it is Good lord! Improvement work costing £55m is to be carried out on Lincolnshire's railway - the biggest investment in the county's rail system for more than 40 years (link below.) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lincolnshire/6157086.stmThe money from Network Rail will be used to replace a two-mile (3.2km) stretch of track running through Lincoln's city centre & the railway station's waiting room and ticket office will also be refurbished............. |
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Lee
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Passengers are being asked to be patient as railway tracks through Lincoln are closed until 3 September 2007 as part of the £55m revamp (link below.) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lincolnshire/6941740.stmCentral Trains will replace services running between Lincoln and Newark , Gainsborough , Cleethorpes and Spalding with buses which will call at local stations in between. Faster, direct commuter buses will run between Sleaford and Lincoln at peak times. Meanwhile , officials have predicted the new direct rail service to London will be a huge economic boost to Lincolnshire (link below.) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lincolnshire/6947419.stmThe county council believes it will help bring forward major housing and road improvements. But they have accepted care must be taken to avoid Lincoln becoming a dormitory town for the capital. |
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« Last Edit: August 15, 2007, 10:16:51 AM by Lee »
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Lee
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A number of staff carrying out multi-million pound works at Lincoln railway station have been suspended in a safety investigation (link below.) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lincolnshire/6956901.stmThe workers have been taken off the job by Network Rail until an inquiry is completed. Network Rail did not give full details but said the men had been seen working in an unsafe manner. |
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(link below.)