Plans for rail link between High Wycombe and Heathrow unveiled
7:30am Tuesday 15th December 2009 in
A RAIL firm has announced radical plans to link High Wycombe to Heathrow Airport and restore the old line to Maidenhead.
The £500m project, which Windsor Link Railway Company aims to begin by 2013, would be privately funded.
The company proposes to build a new 'Wycombe Parkway' station in Loudwater, with more stops along the old line at Wycombe Marsh, Wooburn and Bourne End.
It admits houses built on or near the old route will be “problematic” but it will also consider a route to cross the motorway further to the west.
George Bathurst, the man behind the plans, said: “The main motivation is to make the region a better place to live and work.
“We believe we have a strong business case and several big firms, including HSBC, have already expressed an interest.”
He is in talks with architects and hopes to submit plans for the project and secure planning permission from the Secretary of State next year.
After Maidenhead the line would go through Slough and Windsor before reaching Heathrow Airport.
The company intends to have train services running from Heathrow to Windsor by 2013 and complete the line to High Wycombe by 2016.
Mr Bathurst said the case for the project is strengthened by the last government census, in 2000, which counted 280,000 car journeys per week between High Wycombe and Maidenhead.
The Cleaner Driving report, published in October, said drivers waste 370,000 hours waiting in traffic on the A404 each year – making it the second worst road for jams in Britain.
But The Wycombe Society has indicated it would not back the project because it would prefer smaller “light” trains in the mould of the Docklands Light Railway.
The society has been promoting the idea of reestablishing the rail link between High Wycombe and Maidenhead since 1994 (See link below).
Transport spokesman Dr Elsa Woodward said: “It's ridiculous there isn't a line between the two towns but we wouldn't favour this plan because it wouldn't bring the best returns in terms of saving on energy and land.”
A Network Rail spokesperson said: “Network Rail has been approached by the Windsor Rail Link Company to discuss its proposals and some preliminary meetings have taken place looking only at the high level concept.
We have not had any detailed discussions about the cost, technical and operational feasibility of the scheme.”
Comments(14)
Punchy
says...
8:05am Tue 15 Dec 09
www.thamesvalleycham
ber.co.uk/uploads/Po
licy/WindsorLinkRail
way_presentationSep0
9.pdf
DeepThinker
says...
8:45am Tue 15 Dec 09
"No previous experience in rail!"
... unless you count the fact that there is a preserved steam locomotive call "Earl Bathurst".
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There are also references to other lines that would need major investment from other companies.
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I think that this should be referred to as the "Pie in the Sky" line.
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Whilst a link from High Wycombe through to Heathrow, including connections to the mainline between Reading and London, would be very welcome I am worried about the costings.
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I have a feeling that this is a project conceived by someone who wants to play with "big boys" trains.
weyfarer
says...
9:13am Tue 15 Dec 09
Wycombe Society- light railway? Given the chance of a proper railway linking towns in the region it is madness to show preference for a little thing that shunts up and down a few miles of track benefitting only a few people.
wayneo
says...
10:25am Tue 15 Dec 09
Mutley
says...
10:36am Tue 15 Dec 09
tom.marlow
says...
11:31am Tue 15 Dec 09
.
If you've got luggage its easier to get a taxi from Marylebone/Paddingto
n to St Pancras than try and go on the underground. I suppose CrossRail will make it easier, eventutally.
.
I agree with wayne on this one though, a real train would be better than light rail, if someone can find the dosh.
JP80
says...
11:42am Tue 15 Dec 09
SDJones
says...
11:48am Tue 15 Dec 09
Craig....
says...
12:56pm Tue 15 Dec 09
Merge in Turn
says...
1:35pm Tue 15 Dec 09
S/W:deep-hole
Verdamus
says...
9:38am Wed 16 Dec 09
For the sake of the people living alongside the line, light rail which is quiet and fuel efficient, and therefore preferable.
And very soon the price of petrol - kept low while the Copenhagen talks progress, will start rising steeply.
Miltonian
says...
1:50pm Wed 16 Dec 09
mikesmith
says...
12:49pm Thu 31 Dec 09
It's crazy thinking that anyone other than local people would use the "quiet ultra-light rail". This larger proposal has far better business prospects because it will be an integrated system. If it should succeed, the Bourne End-High Wycombe line should be reinstated as full, real railway linking major towns together; not a dainty model train requiring a dozen stops to travel a few miles.
Getting people onto the wider public transport network will return great yields for the "green agenda". It's not just about reducing road traffic on the London Road/Wye Valley corridor.
Plans for rail link to Heathrow unveiled
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Punchy says...
8:04am Tue 15 Dec 09
www.thamesvalleycham
ber.co.uk/.../Windso
rLinkRailway_present
ationSep09.pdf