£1.2 billion Boost for English Rail and Metro Services

[bnsf734]

I was reading another thread today and came upon this news release from Railnews and thought it deserved wider attention. I don't recall seeing all these schemes announced anywhere else, although some are already known.

Several schemes are metro/tramway related but there are also several Network Rail announcements of new works.

http://railnews.co.uk/news/metro/2009/08/04-one-billion-investment.html

Calvin

 

[jamesontheroad]

The former Luton-Dunstable railway line is to be converted to a guided busway (£78.4 million). This will be the second such project in the region — the former rail route between St Ives and Cambridge is due to open as a guided busway later this year.

What? You mean to tell me that the local councillors there are as stupid / corrupt (delete as appropriate) as the f***wits in Cambridge who thought a guided busway was a good idea? :roll:

 

[Mojo]

Very poor reporting, all of that comes under RFA2, but many schemes have been put far back into the period and are unlikely to see the light of day. Bristol Metro for example has been pushed back past 2016 and is probably unlikely to be funded under this scheme.

Local Transport Today meanwhile reports that the South West has been told by the DfT to revisit priorities as it is too pro-road. Westbury Bypass has already been rejected by the DfT and the money could now be used for Swindon-Kemble, and also that the West Midlands is "very challenging" and potentially undeliverable.

Of course all of this is decided by the unelected regional assemblies. I went to an RFA2 meeting for the SW almost a year ago now and it was held in some leisure centre on the outskirts of Taunton, almost unreachable by public transport and was allowed to speak, very briefly.