New bid to open the old Horsham to Guildford Railway line
Campaigners are planning action to re-open the railway line that runs across the Surrey Sussex border through to Cranleigh and Bramley. It was closed during the Beeching cuts in the 1960s.
The English Regional Transport Association, which also wants to re-open the Horsham to \Shoreham line, has been campaigning for years.
Both lines have been closed for over 50 years, but much of the original track has survived.
Now, transport association chief Richard Pill has said:
I am convinced there’s an overwhelming need, case and demand for this missing rail link.”
Others would disagree. Former MP for Guildford Anne Milton maintained that opening the line would bring even more new housing developments into the eastern villages, and they would be swamped.
However, her successor, Guildford and Cranleigh MP Angela Richardson, has supported efforts to return the railway to the area. Her two priorities when she joined the Government were to build a tunnel under Guildford to meet the A3 and open the Horsham to Guildford railway line through Cranleigh.
Mr Pill wants to pull together working groups to collate local knowledge and statistics to strengthen the group’s bid to re-open the line for regular passengers and freight use.
In a letter to members, he urged them to encourage more local people ‘with a wealth of local knowledge to join the association, get involved in the campaign and voluntarily assist with various tasks.
Last year, campaigners thought they had lost their battle to re-open the defunct track when Waverley Borough Council granted planning consent for the Wey and Arun Canal Trust to continue its Lost Route to the Sea – by building a new link near Bramley, which includes part of the old railway line.
However, the rail buffs were later given fresh hope when they were told there would be a re-run of the planning application, giving them another opportunity to call for support for the rail option.
Some very good news, if there is a robust business case this public spirited endeavour deserves a fair wind.
This would put Cranleigh on the map and give a boost to extra housing development, which in turn would expand the village further into a town. It would also relieve the traffic jams in the High St, as it will decrease the reliance on vehicles in favour of bikes.
But the downside would be that Cranleigh may lose its unique character and become less peaceful and possibly crime ridden. 🙁
I am in favour. Peter Reed
This would take a lot of traffic off the already heavily congested A281 and B2128 through from Cranleigh to Guildford. This is much more needed than reopening the canal route which would only be used for leisure activities (and bring more traffic!). Cranleigh is already in effect a small town and the vast amount of residential building that has been happening in the area has only added to the pressure on the local infrastructure, as well as on the roads full of commuters to Guildford and those taking children to school.
After working for Surrey CC Survey Dept years ago, it was said that the bridges were in such a state that they would cost too much to bring up to standard for trains to run again
Was that all the bridges to Horsham, or just the few around Guildford? The surveys were 25 years ago. Light rail is the way ahead, especially if it links with Dunsfold New Town (as that has no public transport infrastructure at all – contrary to the criteria for being awarded “garden village” status)
“Former MP for Guildford Anne Milton maintained that opening the line would bring even more new housing developments into the eastern villages, and they would be swamped.” Ha! well lack of public transport hasn’t abated the area from being swamped with housing developments! They couldn’t squeeze anymore in – all smugly proclaiming their lies “close to stations with excellent links to Guildford and London”.
You are correct. The former MP said brining back the railway would turn Cranleigh into a town – so what do you have without decent transport links – a Town! As for being unale to squeeze any more in. Dream on. As we write an Inspector will be pouring over the appeal documents and we expect that the decision for another 160 in Knowle Lane will be approved. In the meantime developers are buying up homes elsewhere in Cranleigh. they are on the march again. However, isn’t that what the Cranleigh Chamber of Commerce has been calling for – “more footfall?”