TRACK TECHNOLOGY
On-again, off-again plans to double-track the Swindon to Kemble line are definitely on again. Adam Hewitt reports.
L
ong-delayed plans to restore the double-track between
Kemble and Swindon got the go- ahead in the Budget, vanquishing fears the project was going to fall victim to public spending cuts af- ter campaigners were repeatedly let down over the past few years.
Chairman of public transport pas- senger watchdog TravelWatch SouthWest, Chris Irwin, said: “The voice of the long-suffering passen- gers has finally been heard.”
A Network Rail feasibility study in December 2009 said converting the line to dual track would cost about £52m, down from an ear- lier £62m estimate, but still more than the £45m the Government was prepared to commit.
But a more recent GRIP 4 study revised that down again to just £41.7m, making it much more fea- sible, allowing Chancellor George Osborne to give it the green light in his Budget.
Conservative MP for the Cotswolds, Geoffrey Clifton- Brown, said: “I have fought long and hard for this project for seven years and I am thrilled that all of this hard work has now paid off.
“All of the pieces of the jigsaw have finally come together and per- suaded the Chancellor to find the necessary money. The case for the redoubling project is clear.”
The Swindon- Kemble line was ‘singled’ in the 1960s. Most of the present single line is laid along the centre line of the old double-track, and many level crossings need bringing up to scratch, hence the relatively high cost. Former rail minister Chris Mole had labelled the dual-tracking a “formidable challenge”.
Kemble station is frequently used by passengers from Cirencester
and re-dualling the line will re- move the bottleneck on the Cheltenham to London route.
Network Rail spokeswoman Mavis Choong said: “The value- for-money plan for the line be- tween Swindon and Kemble will unlock the potential to bring more trains and better performance for passengers in Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and South Wales. We will now move to finalise the de- sign plan with an aim to put the first spade in the ground soon.”
MPs had asked Transport Secretary Philip Hammond to look again at the scheme, since the line could be used as a diversion- ary route whilst the Severn Tunnel was closed for electrification.
Cheltenham MP Martin Horwood said: “I think electrification played a crucial part in it, because if you electrify the line through to Bristol and South Wales and make that a faster route, you need some back- up. Of course, the current line can’t provide that because it’s a single track. Redoubled, it will be able to, so I think that electrifica- tion plan was a crucial last piece in the jigsaw.”
Hammond said: “Dualling the 12.5 miles of track between Swindon and Kemble will support the introduction of new Intercity express trains, improving reliabil- ity and underpinning a reduction in journey times between London and Cheltenham and Gloucester of up to 20 minutes.”
First Great Western MD Mark Hopwood called it “fantastic news” that would boost punctual- ity and reliability across that route and the wider network. Work on the scheme is predicted to be com- plete by spring 2014.
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rail technology magazine Apr/May 11 | 179
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