Full steam ahead: Delight at funding for Oswestry to Gobowen community rail line
Bosses at Oswestry's heritage railway say they are thrilled at news that the Government has agreed to foot the bill for a community rail link connecting the town to the mainline, with a stop at the country's orthopaedic hospital.
The Cambrian Heritage Railways had been expecting a decision on the multimillion pound scheme for the Gobowen to Oswestry line. Its Strategic Outline Business Case was submitted exactly a year ago as part of the Beeching Restoration Fund.
But its chairman, Robert Williams, said it had not been expected to be announced alongside the axing of HS2, with funds released by that decision.
He said news that the project would be funded "through to completion" had been met with delight.
"This came as a total surprise," said Mr Williams.
The railway has been busy working toward a community rail line from Oswestry to Gobowen for well over a decade.
It jumped through hoops to be successfully awarded a Transport and Works Order, then in 2014 it acquired the former coal yard at Gobowen Railway Station for the sidings for the line.
The line was closed in the 1960s as part of the Dr Beeching cuts.
Now it is hoped that a light railway, two-and-a-half miles long, will connect the town of Oswestry back to the mainline at Gobowen.
The line will include reopening the Park Hall Halt, orginally built to serve the huge army camp on the edge of Oswestry.
With tracks still in place the halt is just a few hundred metres from the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital.
Mr Williams said: "The line would be a wonderful boost for those using or working at the hospital. It has 100,000 outpatient appointments every year, as well as inpatients and we hope many would take advantage of the light railway."
He said that there were no indications as to how the creation of the line would now progress or the costing.
"The devil really is in the detail," he said.
"It has been a long road so far as there is still a long way to go."
Roger Date, official consultant for the scheme, said there would now be meetings with partners involved, including Network Rail, Shropshire Council, Oswestry Town Council and Oswestry Business Improvement District.
"We need to keep the momentum going now," said Mr Date.
He said the next stage would be to draw up the official business case.
"The Department of Transport has funded to delivery but that does have caveats including being dependent on future updates," he added.
