An exciting new line of thought over railways

I WANT to congratulate Harrogate Chamber of Trade on their recently announced highly imaginative and innovative scheme to electrify the Leeds to York line via Harrogate, using surplus but refurbished London Underground trains and greatly increasing both frequency and capacity (Yorkshire Post, July 22).

The plan involves electrifying the track but not putting in overhead wires. This is the system on most of the Merseyrail network. A number of new stations, such as a park and ride station for the airport and one near Pool to serve Otley would be opened.

Rather than purchasing new trains, stock from the Underground to be replaced after 2014 would be used. The scheme would give us in Horsforth a minimum four trains an hour into Leeds during the day and a doubling of the evening service to two trains hourly, as well as increasing the number of available seats by 50 per cent.

Once electrified, the line could feed into the scheme I frequently advocate for Leeds central area rail tunnels with new stations as Leeds University, Dortmund Square/Merrion Street to serve the Arena and Leeds city square. Later, the tunnel could be extended to Holbeck and connected to lines to Bradford and Halifax to the west and Castleford and Goole to the east, which are also relatively self-contained like the Harrogate line. A northern single track extension to Ripon and Northallerton might be feasible.

The Harrogate scheme, sponsored by the local business community, has received all party support, given the benefits it would bring to Harrogate’s conference, tourism and retail sectors. It would also greatly benefit residents of Horsforth. The cost of £150m is relatively modest when seen in the light of the social and economic boost that could be derived from such am improvement.

Will it happen? Remember this is England and in contrast to a range of countries including Germany, France, Australia and the US which understand the benefits of investment in rail services, the UK Treasury seeks to dilute beyond recognition all worthwhile rail schemes. So I won’t be holding my breath. But for once there’s something exciting on the local rail scene.