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 In
my book, trains are there for reasons concerned with social inclusion
and green tourism, not to be overwhelmed by politicians and
accountants. Our network is a national resource, much-maligned by
the (largely uneducated, at least at the national level) press,
sadly, but there for the benefit of all. It is nothing short of
tragic that the potential of the railways is consistently and continually
stymied, as nothing else is in these islands, by those with a negative
agenda, and even, it has to be said, some industry managers expert
in foot-shooting.....
Passenger figures for the network are now the highest for 40 years,
when the network was 40% larger, but they could grow even more,
to the benefit of everyone, including die-hard road-users, if only......
Railways are not just about business cases, value for money and
endless reports and enquiries while nothing gets done – and
even less about stripping out costs so the product fails to attract
its full potential business - they are for the beneft of the populalion
(especially the young, the old and the disadvantaged), and the environment.
While I was a short-term train spotter in the early-1960s (the
picture below shows me watching school-friend Richard Greveson pointing
at "Midland 1000" at Leeds station in September 1960,
as seen in the local paper!) , my interest in what I basically
term “community railways” started one day in 1978 when
a colleague came round the office selling raffle tickets for Peak
Rail. Within a very few weeks I was a director of the company and
its publicity officer.
 All of 30 years ago, Peak
Rail was a, if not the, pioneer of the community rail philosophy.
Time and time again I was to be seen on TV, heard on radio and read
in the local papers, extolling how Peak Rail would bring a service
which gave access to the Peak District without the need for a car,
and travel opportunities for those living along the line, enabling
them to sensibly reach market towns, hospitals or places of education.
And as far as I was concerned, we had planning permission to put
the whole Buxton-Matlock line back for a princely sum of £2
million. Call me naive, but that’s what I read said!!
Sadly, Peak Rail has not progressed as fast as anyone then involved
would have liked, but it is still developing from its Matlock base.
And, while the project is now keenly supported by Derbyshire County
Council, thanks to the totally lunatic rules imposed on new railways,
the price tag is said to be £200 million. Even so, it is seen
as the best solution to the corridor’s problems, just as Peak
Rail saw its vision pre-1980. But I doubt if it will ever happen,
it is so easy for just one person in the labrynthinal decision chain
to say ‘no’. In the meantime, the Peak Park gets ever
more choked with cars, as Peak Rail was forecasting a quarter of
a century ago. The pictures below show the first two arrivals
at Peak Rail's Buxton site from Dai Woodham's scrap yard in the
early-1980s – 9F 92214 and 4936 Kinlet Hall, how times change
over 25 years!
 My
interest in railways then went dormant, but revived in the late-90s
when I joined Paul Salveson’s group trying to forge a cross
Manchester link from Delph to Horwich, while at the same time the
former Peak Rail MD, Paul Tomlinson had formed the group seeking
to re open the (Derby) Duffield-Wirksworth line to rail travel (the
Wyvern line, where I
was a director for a short while) as well as run open-access main
line trains. The former project came to nought, but the latter,
even without Paul’s indefatigable efforts, has made strides
at Wirksworth.
But both projects had a strong pro-community spirit, and from these
seeds Paul Salveson developed first his TR+IN network, and later
nurtured the Association of Community Rail Partnerships (ACoRP),
of which I have always been a keen supporter.
 A
few years ago, and for several reasons, I founded and chaired the
group seeking to re open the Skipton-Colne railway, closed in 1970,
some say due to an oversight by a cartographer, which route forms
a missing trans-pennine link. The group, SELRAP,
did sterling work and achieved many successes, as are doubtless
related on its web site, including the unique coup of securing,
thanks to its MP Patrons, a debate in the House of Commons. Yet,
despite its obvious benefits and relatively modest costs of restoration,
and having probably unique cross party, cross-boundary political
support, some senior railwaymen seek to kill any idea of success,
for reasons which will always escape my comprehension.
And in 2004 I left SELRAP for a full-blown CRP, a tragically short
foray to the Tyne Valley (the heading picture shows me receiving
the office key from Arriva Trains' Drew Haley), which really
showed how much could be done, and how easily, given the large number
of incredibly enthusiastic supporters that line had, and doubtless
still has. No other business in the UK has anything like the massive,
educated, skilled, enthusiastic and largely volunteer support railways
have - 1000s of keen people nation-wide all working to help grow
patronage, re-open lines for the communities’ benefit or helping
bring about better services through campaigning. Ever heard of a
“Friends of British Airways”, or of the M6?
Sadly, permanent employ in the field of community railways has (so
far!) eluded me, and may remain thus given the present government's
attitude to investment in developing England's railways and the
way the community rail flame, once bright and entreprenural, has
dimmed of late. My year or so working on GB Railways’ thwarted
bid for the Northern rail franchise proved my long-held feelings
for matters of this kind - there is a relatively large potential
for rail and local businesses alike, and for improved life styles
for many people, if the "community rail" routes are fully
supported, properly marketed and some of the absolute nonesenses
of timetabling, fares and rolling stock provision eliminated. That
is a big ask, given the ethos of many in this particular loop, and
while many do embrace this philosophy, it only takes one bean counter
to say ‘no’ for all the goodwill and enthusiasm to be
suffocated and for the line(s) to decline into uselessness.
If I have a passion for anything, it is to see railways used pro
bono publico, and for rural lines in particular developed, exactly
as Pauls Salveson and Tomlinson have so frequently expounded, to
maximise their potential. The potential is there and is easily realisable,
if everyone says ‘yes’ to the obvious. But, and it seems
this is particularly prevalent in the railways for I have never
seen it in aerospace or publishing, there always seems to be a dissenting
voice able to upset the applecart from afar. But the momentum is
continually gathering, and I would still passionately adhere myself
to any group sharing, and realistically developing, ideas aligned
with my ideals. Meanwhile, I am delighted to say that I am now back
on the committee of my local rail user group, AVRUG,
and editing its newsletter, which is one small step....
And early in 2008 another, larger, step was taken when I was asked
to write on a freelance basis for RAIL magazine: I do mainly news
stories, generally about 6000 words an issue, but I also tackle
analysis of special issues, and the occasional feature where my
views, since I am an old Yorkshireman, peep through just a bit!
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