Swanage Rail link under threat if funding not secured.
* Friday, 05 February 2010
The impact on the Town and the Isle of Purbeck of losing the service in the early ‘70s was dramatic, reconnecting the line would have an equally dramatic positive impact
February 4th 2010:
A Town & Community collectively holds its breath……………..
The much loved Swanage Railway, devotedly restored over the last 30 years is in danger of missing a key deadline to re-connect to the main line as local councils ponder funding issues.
Swanage is on the Dorset Peninsula known as the Isle of Purbeck and is an idyllic Victorian seaside resort, nestling at the eastern gateway to the spectacular World Heritage Jurassic Coast. Access to the region is limited to a single road in through Wareham and Corfe Castle or via the chain ferry at Sandbanks. This limited access has always restricted the number of visitors the region can comfortably support or the ability of local residents to travel to Bournemouth and Poole for work or education.
Having originally been closed in the early ‘70s, a dedicated band of hard working volunteers have spent the last 30 years restoring the line with the fervent hope of achieving a regular service by connecting to the Network Rail system at Wareham. This achievement is now in jeopardy as a key milestone approaches, namely Network Rail’s process planning for future signalling requirements. To achieve this and give it every opportunity of re-connection after 2012, the railway in the form of the Purbeck Rail Partnership needs an investment of £3 million to be committed by the end of February.
Apparent sources of funding from the Swanage Town Council, Purbeck District Council and elsewhere have so far not been forthcoming even though reputedly significant sums of money are invested or held elsewhere.
Informed estimates of the likely increased annual contribution to the local economy of a direct rail link are in excess of £7 million so what better investment could be made in the region’s future?
“The impact on the Town and the Isle of Purbeck of losing the service in the early ‘70s was dramatic, reconnecting the line would have an equally dramatic positive impact on the region from a social, economic and commercial perspective” said Julian Maughan, Vice Chairman of the Swanage & Purbeck Hospitality Association.
Once the investment has been secured, there are still a number of tasks to be funded and completed before the line can be re-opened for regular passenger traffic. However, without inclusion in Network Rail’s Poole to Wool re-signalling scheme for 2012, it is unlikely that such an opportunity will arise for many years. Hence this is the chance of a generation.
A regular rail connection to Wareham will allow people to travel between Purbeck and the rest of the country without using their cars, thus alleviating pressure on the county’s already crowded roads, as well as the environment.
Swanage Railway is already running regular train services over most of the branch. This has a substantial impact on the economy of Purbeck and Dorset. In 2009, Swanage Railway carried a record 224,000 passengers. Furthermore, the first through passenger trains from outside Dorset since 1972 arrived in Swanage with several more planned for 2010. Even these irregular charter trains had a major impact on the local economy as they brought many people into the area, benefitting the retail and hospitality trade in Swanage
For more information please contact Mr Julian Maughan Vice Chairman - Swanage & Purbeck Hospitality Association 01929 423972 / stay@thecastleton.co.uk
Sunday, February 07, 2010
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
39 comments:
I asked at a recent Council meeting why this suddenly seems to be a crisis - when they've been planning the connection for years. I was told that the various government grants that had been available are now not. By the way, does anyone know what the Railway turnover was last year?
Why oh why are Government Grants the be all and end all of everything in the processes of things that cost money, and when local Conservative led Councils need to find funding for anything, it is the obvious excuse? Certain projects are affordable if money is managed in a logical way, surely?
Surely, this is a worthwhile and future profitable and versatile way of spending some of the SBV money on? True, Government, whichever Government has a duty to help as they will take a cut as per usual from any profits generated, but it's time for Swanage and Wareham 'head honchos' to do all they can to make this happen for the good of all.
Paul.
It's easy to check the Charitable side.
http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/ShowCharity/RegisterOfCharities/CharityWithoutPartB.aspx?RegisteredCharityNumber=1087318&SubsidiaryNumber=0
JIC
http://tinyurl.com/yl7fr4u
which look healthy.
Not so easy to check on the company tho'
http://www.ukdata.com/creditreports/viewCompanyDetails.do?companyId=04115126&only-match=1
unless you know better!
Romantic visions of the good old days of BR service into Swanage....rose-tinted specs vision of a happy, small, human-scale sustainable secondary school....I have followed these - and other - ideas on this discussion board since its inception. The common aspect to all these schemes is money - and in particular this common belief that the government will provide. Well, dear reader, just where does the government get this largess? And, in the deepest recession since the Great Depression, where will it find this money in the near future?
Borrow more? And leave it up to our children to repay the debt?
Print more? And deal with the inflation that will follow?
Let's get a grip and accept the fact that we cannot have everything we want. I suggest we wait and use the next few years to sort out what we have, not through throwing more money at it, but by doing a bit of 'house cleaning' that we missed while we dreamed big ideas.
Raise money to keep the last Vulcan bomber flying? Not now - mothball it until money becomes readily available again. Join up Swanage Railway to the main line? Not now - not until a viable transport scheme and business plan justifies it (in the meantime, get our elected official to defer any impending deadline). Build a new secondary school? Not now - let's pressure Purbeck School to improve itself once it has extra numbers and more resources. And, for goodness sake, let's stop dreaming ways of spending the money from the sale of SBV - the interest alone from it will have to add to the town coffers for the next century. At least that is what we are told, though I wonder.....
Taking a realistic approach is what we are all having to have to do with our home budgets, and our businesses plans, as we work through this 'Great Recession' as apparently it has been named. Let's stop spending money on 'grand schemes' and instead pause, think, analyse, and await the economic recovery to come - with coherent plans at the ready, when the time is right.
"... await the economic recovery to come ...."
Recoveries don't just happen, someone has to make them.
Ideally that's a mixture of Gov't and Private investment, then unemployment slows, confidence grows and people start spending again.
Some, OK me, would say that as money is cheap at the moment, borrow, as people need work there should be lots of classy and competitive tenders and then when the recovery starts the railway will be ideally positioned to cash in and pay off that cheap debt.
That of course means taking a risk, but then all business is based on risk.
I'm not going to post this twice as I feel that the School issue and this one are entirely different issues.
Bye now!
It used to be quite spooky, travelling on an empty train. Sometimes when I got off at Swanage someone else left the other end of the train, sometimes not. The closure was hardly a surprise and describing the impact as dramatic is pure hyperbole.
"Join up Swanage Railway to the main line? Not now - not until a viable transport scheme and business plan justifies it (in the meantime, get our elected official to defer any impending deadline)."
Well...maybe, depends on what you mean by justify, the transport arrangement that gives the best outcome for the locality as a whole is unlikely to be the one that generates the most profit on paper in a business plan. That is the fallacy behind expecting the market to solve our problems.
We are getting a huge amount of propaganda about the need to reduce state borrowing. Have you asked yourself why. Consider for a moment that then the banks looked like going down the guys who own all this lovely money were only too keen to lend it to governments, now they think they can get a safe return elsewhere state borrowing has become a problem. What a surprise.
If the taxpayer is going to stump up this money I trust the line will be a proper light railway meeting all the London/Weymouth trains; not just a steam railway run by enthusiasts for tourists.
(this was previously posted elsewhere..)
Anonymous said...
Here's an out-of-the-box suggestion that might assuage the environmental concerns of Education Swanage:
Instead of relying on cars or buses for the school run, pressure the councils to think of rail as the solution:
-create a 'halt' station where the Swanage Rail track crosses the 352;
-then upgrade the sidewalk from that point to Purbeck School and create a pedestrian tunnel (with CCTV cameras) under, or bridge over, the A351 roundabout. This walk could be fenced for safety and traverse the A351 just south of the roundabout, abutting school property. Children could be kept under supervision and safe from adverse elements at the school, until the train arrives, thus waiting at the school in safety and comfort until released to make the 5 minute journey by foot to the halt (= healthy exercise twice a day!).
-Those two mothballed locomotives that were purchased by DCC (or was it PDC?) can be released to provide a sort of 'Purbeck Express' train (like 'Hogwart's Express!) to make trips between Swanage Station and the school. It would put Swanage and Swanage railway on the map for finding a novel and creative solution.
-The trains (or certain carriages exclusive to school children) can be supervised and exclusive to pupils and staff; hence concerns over safety and child protection issues are assured.
-These trains could also (when the time comes and Wareham Station is linked) go into service at other times of the day for commuters going further afield by extending the journey to Wareham station. This is a long term goal of DCC and this plan would provide it with further impetus.
Besides protecting the environment, reducing car journeys, and avoiding expensive contracts with bus companies, it would be a quicker journey (20-25 minutes) if express, or perhaps 30 minutes with stops at Herston and Corfe Castle. The costs could be predicted and fixed by the operator' making it easier to fund it from Councils.
No doubt money will have to be found, and planning and other permissions obtained, but it just may solve several challenges (education and transport) facing Swanage.
Until is happens, buses can be contracted between Swanage and Purbeck School. Buses are better for the environment than the cars they replace.
Crazy idea? Perhaps. But don't reject it too soon! I remember being told of a story of David Mellor being ragged on one such school commute by rail to or from Swanage 50 years ago, so the concept is probably an old one!
I confess - the above is my post! Re-reading it in the light of a few days' time and reflection, I do think it is a bit far-fetched, especially in these economically-trying times, but I perhaps it gives some food for thought.
I should think it would be cheaper to move the school to the railway and let Tesco have the old school site.
From the wording of their consultancy PDC want a huge supermarket at Worgret and the majority who responded also want this.
Partnership time?
Hmmmm.....let's speculate over this:
First, let's assume the change to two tier education will go ahead. Meanwhile PCC approves an Asda or Tesco superstore to be built at Worgret....the carrot being that Asda/Tesco create the safe link to Purbeck School, and create a partnership with DCC to run a subsidized school train between Swanage and the superstore store at Worgret/Purbeck School....soon after, Asda/Tesco runs free or subsidized trains several times a day between Swanage and the new superstore for local customers.......meanwhile Swanage Railway gets income as a royalty from this too. Sounds good in theory -- but would this be the death knell of one of the two supermarkets in Swanage, and some local businesses, too? Or will this create so many new jobs for Swanage people that the benefits will outweigh the negatives?
Progress? You decide.
Strange that a few years ago PDC were fighting to te last man against a supermarket on the edge of Wareham. This got as far as a legal battle over the status of the district plan. I seem to recall it was Sainsburys who were interested. I wonder if they bought the site and are hanging on to it to stop other firms getting it not that they have the old Somerfield store..
Progress?
Hmmm, as with most issues is progress smooth and linear, fair and balanced?
Or is it swings and roundabouts?
Say that the huge supermarket opens. Say the the W'ham Co-op closes. Say that a Workers, or Artists, or farmers - or all - Co-operative take over the building.
Wouldn't that be fantastic?
Mind you, your swings may of course, be my roundabouts.
Whoops. forgot to add that then I could take the wonderful newly subsidised train to W'ham and then shop in the town.
Of course, if they have cut price superstore petrol there, people with cars will drive and not bother with the train, rather defeating the purpose.
Well, yeah, but then they'd just be stoopid.
Anyone with half a brain uses the Superstores when they're passing, thus no additional trips.
If they don't pass a superstore then I trust that on their special trip to said Superstore then they are also visiting other essential stores or seeing friends and/or family or are going shopping after an exhilarating walk in the countryside.
The rest may as well just take the train!
And when the Co-op closes it can be demolished and the car park becomes a park and ride for the train commuters!
I see SWRDA [South West of England Regional Development Agency] has agreed a £9.96m loan to the
the Borough of Poole for the Twin Sails Bridge plan.The council will find out in the next few weeks if the Department for Transport has approved a £14.1m grant.
Don't they have any money for the Railway link?
And Rossmore Community College in Poole was just granted over 21 million pounds for its conversion into an academy with 900 pupils 11-16 and a sixth form of 200 - 100 smaller than Purbeck is at present.
http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/4882574.Rossmore_College_to_get___21m_to_become_academy/
Why is Poole so favoured over Purbeck?
Poole has forward thinking people advocating and lobbying for it. Swanage and PDC do not. Simple as that!
just look at what has happened in other towns where out of town superstores have been allowed to gobble up the countryside. As the store sells more and more types of merchandise the town centre slowly dies. That will happen in Swanage - then the tourists wont come....what will we have left - a railway, a dilapidated 60s theatre...someone needs to get a grip soon !
The comments comparing Poole with Swanage/Purbeck are illuminating!
Poole is a Unitary Authority, DCC is our nearest equivalent.
Poole looks after itself, DCC have to look after the rest of Dorset, minus B'mouth, of course.
Then DCC is less efficient than Poole at safeguarding our interests.
THAT is illumninating!
Comfusion about such matters like this are understandable when Swanage pretends - and calls itself - a TOWN COUNCIL when, in fact, it is a PARISH COUNCIL.
'Pardon me boys..is that the Puuurrrbeck choo-choo (YAHH..YAHH)
On track 29 - get me to Wareham on time (WAHHH-WAHHH)!!!!'
Git 'er done!!! Stop hanging about!!
The game plan appears to be full connection to the mainline? Is this the stumbling block?
There are instances in other locations where the 'preserved' steam/diesel railway runs as far as it can go without actually being joined to the mainline and the signalling headache it can create. A station near or adjacent to the mainline is used as a type of 'transfer' facility. Has there been the proposal of a kind of compromise in which there would be a change of train, not massively inconvenient, for passengers to embark from up and down mainline services to meet the preserved line and not incurring unfeasible doubt as seems to be reported?
When the time comes that such signalling and extra trackwork is given the go ahead, then a full connection could be proven by usage and the amount of prosperity it will bring to all interested parties?
Partial connection is better than no connection, surely?
Paul.
A good question. My understanding is that the railway trust's engines have to terminate at Worgret.
DCC has two locomotives in mothballs waiting to be activated for a passenger/commuter service from Swanage Station to Worgret or possibly beyond, so I am led to believe. The trust's steam locomotives wouldn't be able to do this run effectively. I would imagine that if such a commuter line were made, it would be a separate business from Swanage Railway, but I may be wrong.
More money has just been released by the council so maybe this signaling will go ahead now.
so if the steam train runs to Wareham how does it turn around so the driver can see the way back?
I was not aware Worgret had a station?
It doesn't, Nick, but the idea is to do something about connecting Swanage with the main line, rather than extending the line from Swanage to Wareham. Worgret is the first place the track meets the main line, so passengers could disembark one for the other. They could build a station there for this purpose.
If you remember the stories about 'push-me/pull-me' from our youth, you will know that locomotives run in two directions.
Hope this helps.
In today's Echo:
http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/districts/purbeck/5018387.Time_running_out_for_Swanage_rail_plan_cash/
I see PDC is asking people to register their support in various ways, including through a Faceboook page accessible through
http://swanagewarehamraillink.wordpress.com/
Wow - let's get it done through Facebook.
How sad. PDC - get the job done.
In Tuesday's Echo:
Is Swanage mainline rail plan running out of steam?
THE dream of reconnecting Swanage to the mainline rail network could hit the buffers.
Members of the Purbeck Rail Partnership, the group established to champion the project, have failed in their bid to secure £3million needed to bankroll the scheme.
Now they have just two months to secure alternative funding, after Network Rail extended its end of February deadline.
National Rail bosses need a cast-iron guarantee, by the end of April, that the money will be made available ahead of planned Poole to Wool re-signalling work set for 2012.
Dorset County Council traffic manager Tim Westwood said: “The Purbeck Rail Partnership’s bid for £3m from south-west regional government to reconnect Swanage with the mainline rail network was unsuccessful.
“The deadline for securing the funding has now been extended by Network Rail to the end of April 2010 and the partnership is working hard to identify alternative sources of funding.”
Campaigners have worked to re-establish the link after an absence of more than three decades.
Local business leaders, many in the hospitality industry, believe a rail link is vital for the Swanage’s future. A Purbeck Hospitality Association spokesman said: “A regular rail connection to Wareham will allow people to travel between Purbeck and the rest of the country without using their cars, thus alleviating pressure on the county’s already crowded roads, as well as the environment.”
Volunteers from Swanage Railway, who already run services over most of the branch line, have also run a handful of irregular charter trains, bringing passengers in from outside the county.
The Purbeck Rail Partnership includes the county council, Purbeck District Council, Borough of Poole, and South West Trains.
...................................
OK children, discuss...............
If the charter trains can already join the mainline then why is the £3M also necessary?
Nick-
It's something to do about the switching. It's a guess, but I think that it can be done physically on a one-off basis, but its not up to scratch for regular use. I am sure others know the answer!
There seems to be a lot of confusion and misinformation here. As a Swanage resident and volunteer on the railway, a few facts:
The £3M is to cover the costs of including the Swanage branch in the resignalling scheme for the Poole - Wool mainline. Network Rail need this sum, payable in installments, to cover both the additional design work and the implementation. Done as a separate exercise from the current resignalling, the cost estimate is nearer £10M.
Network Rail need the commitment of £3M pretty much immediately because the planning for the resignalling is getting underway NOW. If the design work is well progressed in, say, 3months time and we say "hey, we do want the link after all", NR will have to throw away their work and start again, incurring SIGNIFICANT extra costs. It truly is now or never. That said, NR have extended the deadline from end-Feb to end-March - an indication that NR are not being difficult about things, they actually want the scheme to go ahead, but they can't do it if there's no funding.
SR have no plans to run regular steam commuter trains to Wareham. For one thing, running over the national network requires rolling stock that is equipped with European-standard control and monitoring equipment, meets mainline standards, etc.. etc.. which the SR stock does not. The rolling stock purchased by Purbeck Rail Partnership is "heritage" diesel units. These will need upgrading (including central locking) to meet the national requirements, but this is cheaper than rebuilding all the SR's rolling stock.
SR do not have a Train Operating License over the network. Trains would need to be operated by an existing TOC, such as SouthWest trains. They MIGHT choose to also use their own rolling stock. Potentially, they could run Swanage to Poole/Bournemouth.
The network connection DOES currently exist, as we know, and incoming charters can continue to use the connection, even without the resignalling. However doing so incurs significant costs for each movement, and the journey from Swanage to Wareham takes around an hour, due to the manual arrangements needed at Worgret Junction and at Motala (the SR/Network Rail interface). That's not practical or feasible for a regular daily service.
There is no station at Worgret to allow for interchange; nor is there currently space to realign the branch to allow it to terminate parallel to the main line. TOCs (Train operating companies) would be reluctant to stop at Wareham AND again at Worgret for the SR connection. The cost of building even a basic interchange would almost certainly exceed £3M and would be far less flexible than a "proper" main line connection.
If the people of Swanage are serious in their support for the scheme, they need to be lobbying the powers-that-be for all they're worth NOW in order to get that commitment within the next week. Failing that find a wealthy sponsor to underwrite at least part of the costs - the sums involved really are not that outrageous and there are plenty of wealthy benefactors with multi-million pound pockets who could at least underwrite until such time as either central or local public funding could finally be sorted out.
As for the railway's profitabilty... not really in a position to comment, but whilst passenger numbers are higher than ever, costs are also higher than ever. Stock is older than ever and, if we DO succeed in running services beyond Norden, the railway will be bigger than ever. The SR came back from the brink of bankruptcy through a combination of careful management and great support from locals and enthusiasts alike. But don't think that, just because it may just break even, it's in a position to invest £3M right now... :-)
Watch this space!
The problem is we have a council that would rather invest £10M on a business park that no one wants, rather than creat real jobs for the area by investing in the reconnection. Note the word INVEST. There will be a real return on money spent on the railway.
Post a Comment