Kemble-Swindon rail link - funding secured
A crucial rail link in Gloucestershire will be upgraded after funding was secured.
The Swindon-Kemble rail link was given the green light at a meeting of the South West Region Transport and Infrastructure Board in Exeter on Thursday.
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Train Lines
The scheme to double the track should cost around £50m - of which £20m has already been committed through the South West region.
The balance will now come from the £30m originally allocated to the Westbury Bypass improvement, which is not now going ahead.
Councillor Stan Waddington, county council cabinet member for environment, said: "This is very good news for Gloucestershire and a triumph for the persistence of all those people and businesses that have supported our campaign to get this scheme brought forward.
"Altogether more than 800 people signed our online petition and another 60 businesses, representing around 10,000 employees sent letters of support."
For more on this story, see Friday's editions of the Gloucestershire Echo and The Citizen.
4 Comments
by Phil Jones, London W11
Thursday, November 12 2009, 8:42PM
“David, the NR work crew that is presently working on Oxford-Worcester partial redoubling will be moved to Kemble next, around mid-2010. The work of redoubling Swindon-Kemble is estimated to be finished by the end of 2010. FJ, Purton station is planned for re-opening, also a good possibility of Chalford in the Golden Valley. It's great, great news for everyone who worked so hard for it!!”
by Andrew Oakley, Near Winchcombe
Thursday, November 12 2009, 5:54PM
“If this means more direct trains home from London to Cheltenham in the evenings, it might actually tempt me to use Cheltenham train station. At the moment I use Evesham for London journeys, since there are so many more direct trains back home.”
by David, Gloucester
Thursday, November 12 2009, 5:48PM
“Good news, the article doesn't mention the timescale for this though. The sooner the better.”
by FJ, Glos
Thursday, November 12 2009, 5:31PM
“Excellent news for Gloucestershire!
Does anybody know what kind of service improvements are planned to make use of the extra capacity?”