Lobby group rails over threat to Shropshire-London line

WEST Midlands lobby group Campaign for Rail is concerned that a row between Network Rail and Virgin Trains could lead to plans for a new service between Shrewsbury and London hitting the buffers.

Virgin planned to launch the new service – linking Shrewsbury, Wellington, Telford, Stafford and London Euston in December. However, Network Rail has blocked the proposal, claiming that there are no paths available on the West Coast Main Line, even though the service was promised by both First Group and Virgin as part of their franchise bids for West Coast services. 

Unless there is a resolution in the next few weeks, rail passengers from Shropshire will continue to have no direct rail services to London.

Don Barton, chairman of Campaign for Rail, said that the Virgin/Network Rail spat was “not in the public interest and not in the interests of Shropshire rail users”.

He added: “Shropshire is the only county in England without a direct rail link to London. It is not a rural backwater, it is a major tourist destination and of course there is a need to encourage new businesses and industries to locate in the county and provide new jobs and investment. 

“A good rail service would be a priority for companies looking at locating in the area.”

Barton has called on transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin to intervene if Network Rail and Virgin do not come to an agreement.

“Businesses want better rail services, the public in Shropshire does and there is political support from all parties,” he said. 

“This row between Network Rail and Virgin Trains needs to be sorted, and both must focus on the job the rail passenger and tax-payer are asking them to do, running a sustainable, reliable, value for money service rather than arguing amongst themselves.”

David Cameron said during Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday that Mr McLoughlin was set to meet Shrewsbury MP Daniel Kawczynski next week to discuss ways of resolving the lack of a direct rail service between the town and the capital.

He said the problem highlighted why the HS2 scheme was so important as it would relieve congestion on the existing network allowing links such as this to go ahead.

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