East West Rail Link

East West Rail Link is a planned railway route linking the Great Western Main Line, Oxford, Bicester, Milton Keynes, Bedford, Cambridge, Ipswich and Norwich in England using part of the former Varsity Line. The western section from Oxford to Bedford was approved by the Government in November 2011, with completion expected in 2017.

The plan is divided into three sections. A 'Western section' from Oxford and the Great Western Main Line at Didcot to Bedford on existing lines, including the mothballed section between Bletchley and Claydon. A 'central section' from Bedford to Cambridge using some existing lines together with a new section and an 'Eastern section' from Cambridge to Norwich, Felixstowe and Ipswich on existing lines. It is being promoted by the East-West Rail Consortium, a consortium of local authorities and interested bodies along the route.

Origins
The link is promoted by the East West Rail Consortium, which was initiated by Ipswich Borough Council in 1995 and which it chaired for 10 years. The council and its neighbours were particularly concerned about poor services within East Anglia and the links to London. Some success was achieved east of Cambridge, at least partly through the efforts of the group.

In 2001, the Strategic Rail Authority rejected the option to reopen the stretch of line between Bicester and Bletchley.

In 2005 Buckinghamshire County Council took over chairing the Consortium.

In April 2006, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister reported itself to be in favour of the principle of re-opening the link between Bedford and Oxford but gave no indication of underwriting that opinion.

In May 2006 the Department of Transport announced specific plans for Bletchley station. The document states that "it is likely" that Bletchley area renewals and network simplification will take place by 2010, "to include a high-level platform" for Bedford trains. The network will be suitable for the later addition of any 'East-West' link to and from Oxford and for the operation of through links from either Oxford or Bedford to and from Milton Keynes.

In the expansion plans for Milton Keynes, the area around Newton Longville was to be extensively developed. A new passenger station for Newton Longville was included in the "MK2031" strategic plan. However, following the United Kingdom general election, 2010, the new Coalition Government cancelled the growth targets set by the outgoing Labour Government and consequently these plans, for a settlement called 'Salden Chase', were placed in abeyance. Nevertheless, in March 2013, the developers' consortium had begun consulting with nearby parish councils with a view to resubmitting another planning application, albeit at a rather smaller scale. The plans show only a reserved site for a station.

On 4 December 2006, work began at Milton Keynes Central to prepare for a service connection from the Marston Vale Line. The project was completed in early 2009 but has yet to receive a service to Bedford.

During 2006 it was announced that, in a bid to co-host the 2012 London Olympics, a large rowing lake would be built near the former station site at Willington in Bedfordshire, in return for a licence to extract gravel. The lake would cut through the route of the trackbed between Bedford and Sandy and any subsequent bridging costs would seem to be prohibitive, especially given the uninterrupted span that would be required to avoid obstructing the lake. However the lake was not built in time for the Olympics and indeed as of June 2013 there has still been essentially no construction work on it; the present state of works is most clearly shown on this site which depicts some very minor "landscaping" work taking place around one of the flooded gravel pits which already exist on the site.

In March 2007, a study (funded by the councils and other interested parties along the route) declared at p. 38, 5.1 ''A very good operating and business case exists for [a "base case" for a] 2 trains per hour passenger service between Oxford and Milton Keynes, and an operating case also exists for the Aylesbury spur which would bring further economic and strategic advantages to the subregion. Capital cost for the base case is between £100m – £135m. The base case and the Aylesbury options should be further considered in the next phase of work.''

In April 2008, the Department for Transport responded to an e-petition for support on East West Rail by reiterating that they would encourage private funding.

The current proposal for a new eco-town at Weston Otmoor also proposes a dedicated new railway station on the Oxford-Bicester line, citing direct commuter trains to London, with the reinstated east-west rail link giving access to Milton Keynes and Oxford. The proposals were examined in summer 2008, and a further consultation period extends to April 2009.

Chiltern Railways opened Aylesbury Vale Parkway 3 mi to the north west of Aylesbury station, adjacent to the A41 and the major development at Berryfields on the formerly freight-only Great Central and Metropolitan joint line in December 2008. It is also proposed that this service is extended further north to reach a rebuilt Oxford-Bletchley line at Claydon railway station. Chiltern Railways also has long-term aspirations to reach Milton Keynes.

In the 2011 Autumn Statement by Chancellor George Osborne the East West railway between Oxford, Aylesbury Vale Parkway and Bedford was given the go ahead with £270 million committed to the scheme. This was confirmed in July 2012 when The Secretary of State for Transport, the Rt. Hon Justine Greening MP announced that the Western section of East West Rail (EWR) would be part of the government's strategy for rail transport.

Phase 1 – Western Section
The western section will link Oxford and Aylesbury to Milton Keynes and Bedford with connections to the West Coast Main Line and the Midland Main Line. It will use the Oxford to Bicester Line, a renovated section of the Varsity Line from Bicester to Bletchley, and finally the Marston Vale Line from Bletchey to Bedford. The existing Cherwell Valley Line will be used to link to the Great Western Main Line at Didcot Parkway railway station. A new passenger service to Aylesbury might be created using a freight-only section of the Great Central Main Line from Aylesbury Vale station connecting to the Marston Vale Line at Calvert, near Claydon. The project is being developed by the Milton Keynes Partnership and Chiltern Railways.

Planning
In February 2008 the consortium published a business case for re-opening the western section of the route funded by Milton Keynes Partnership (MKP), South East England Regional Assembly, South East England Development Agency and the consortium.

In March 2008, a £2 million engineering survey of the existing and removed tracks was launched, and those undertaking the engineering survey stated that a 100 mph link between Oxford and Bletchley could be achieved for around £190 million. If construction were to start in 2009 as they then hoped, the upgraded / re-opened line could be in service by 2012.

In November 2008 the Milton Keynes Partnership, Chiltern Railways and the consortium formally agreed to take their proposals forward together. Chiltern Railways would take the lead on the upgrading of the Oxford-Bicester section with its Project Evergreen 3 and the Milton Keynes Partnership would lead for the rest of the line to Bletchley.

In December 2008 the commissioning of a further report, to take the project forward to GRIP Stage 4 (single option selection), was announced. This was to encompass work to analyse the additional requirements (as outlined above), not previously considered in detail, to GRIP Stage 3 equivalent, as well as revisiting the future requirements for the existing Bletchley-Bedford line.

According to section 3 of the October 2008 Progress report, during 2008 a number of proposals from other parties emerged which might have a significant impact on the project:
 * an aspiration to use the route as part of a strategic freight route
 * an aspiration to provide longer-distance north-south passenger services avoiding Birmingham, which could use the western section as part of its route
 * a proposal by Chiltern Railways to run Oxford-Bicester-London passenger services via a mooted new south-to-east chord to the existing Chiltern line.

Section 3 also states that there is some uncertainty over various parties' requirements for the existing Bletchley-Bedford railway.

Infrastructural assessment investigations would be taken forward in parallel with this work funded by £2 million of contribution, half directly by the Department of Communities and Local Government and the other half in varying proportions from various local authorities' Growth Area Funding allocation. Work to clear vegetation from the redundant section of line for the infrastructure assessment started in January 2009.

Design and service pattern considerations
The February 2008 report identified two options defined from different perspectives, the "Regional Rail" option (the best commercial case) and the "Local Rail" option (as identified by the requirements mainly of local authorities and business interests). As part of existing upgrades, a new bay platform has been provided at Milton Keynes Central, which will be able to receive the local services. The infrastructure between Oxford and Bletchley required by both options is essentially the same. The spur from Calvert to Aylesbury is only included in the Local option, though about 20% of southern part of the route has already been reinstated under the Aylesbury Vale Parkway project. The line from north of Wolvercote Tunnel (just north of Oxford) through Bicester to Bletchley would be enabled for 100 mph double-track running. The Oxford-Wolvercote Tunnel section, and the Aylesbury-Calvert line if also provided, would be 90 mph single-track working. A new high-level platform would be provided at Bletchley, with new stations (under the Local option only) at Winslow and Newton Longville.

Both options would see the present hourly stopping service between Bletchley and Bedford reduced to every two hours (apparently conflicting with the stated aim of improving stopping services), but with an additional hourly semi-fast service stopping only at Woburn Sands. Both options would provide two services per hour over the Oxford-Bletchley section: under the Regional option, both services would serve Milton Keynes via the West Coast Main Line; under the Local option there would be more stops than the semi-fast Regional Rail service, and one service would continue semi-fast to Bedford instead, an additional Milton Keynes train serving Aylesbury via Bletchley. A further possible hybrid option was identified based on the Regional Rail option, but with the additional hourly train serving Aylesbury working through to Bedford.

Following a joint travelling exhibition by the Consortium, Milton Keynes Partnership and Chiltern Railways in April 2009, the May EWRC 2009 publicity leaflet cites the following proposed service patterns: Additionally there will be 2tph between Oxford and London Marylebone using the section between Oxford and Bicester provided by Chiltern Railways as part of its Evergreen 3 project. This service will commence in 2013 upon completion of the chord between the Oxford–Bletchley line and the Chiltern Main Line.
 * Oxford to Bedford: 1tph (train per hour) stopping Oxford-Bletchley, semi-fast Bletchley-Bedford (fastest through journey 43 minutes)
 * Bletchley to Bedford: 1tph stopping all stations (fastest through journey 42 minutes)
 * Oxford to Milton Keynes: 1tph stopping all stations (fastest through journey 47 minutes)
 * Aylesbury to Milton Keynes: 1tph stopping all stations (fastest through journey 33 minutes). This could potentially be an extension of a service from London Marylebone via High Wycombe.

Approval
In the 2011 Autumn Statement by Chancellor George Osborne the East West railway between Oxford, Aylesbury Vale Parkway and Bedford was given the go ahead with £270 million committed to the scheme. One station will reopen at Winslow while the Bicester Town and Aylesbury to Bletchley sections will be upgraded or built to a 90-100mph line speed. Currently it is due for completion in 2017.

On 16 July 2012, the East-West Rail Consortium made the following announcement: "The Secretary of State for Transport, the Rt. Hon Justine Greening MP, today announced that the Western section of East West Rail (EWR) will be part of the government’s strategy for rail transport, confirming not only funding for the project but also for electrification of the Oxford to Bedford part of the route. EWR will provide an electric link between the electrified Great Western, West Coast and Midland main lines. This further investment in the project upgrades it to form a key part of the new ‘Electric Spine’ passenger and freight route between the South Coast, the East Midlands and Yorkshire". The media have been slow to pick up on this. It was not until 12 October 2012 that ITV news reported "New rail link for Thames Valley".

On 10 January 2013 Network Rail announced its intention to construct the western section between Bedford and Oxford, Aylesbury and Milton Keynes, as part of their five-year strategic business plan (2014–2019). The target date for train services to be operational on this section is December 2017. Electrification of the line between Oxford and Bedford is also included in the budget with a target completion date of March 2019.

The central section
There is currently no suitable route from Bedford to Cambridge since the Bedford to Cambridge line closed in 1967 and key sections of this line have since been re-used for other purposes, including the Ryle Telescope as part of the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory, the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway, National Cycle Route 51 and also housing and a proposed new rowing lake near Sandy.

Three main infrastructural options for linking to the East Coast Main Line ECML:
 * a central route leading east or south-east from Bedford to the ECML at Sandy or Hitchin
 * a southern route providing a relatively short link to the Midland Mainline at Stewartby (south of Bedford) and then southwards to Luton south of which a new section of track, partially in tunnel, would be built to the ECML at Stevenage, from where the link would continue to Cambridge and/or Stansted airport.
 * a northern route (which was discounted) continuing northward from Bedford over the Midland Mainline and the existing line through Corby and the existing Oakham-Stamford-Peterbrough line with a new south-to-east chord between the latter two lines to avoid reversing.

The central option has been costed at £250 million and the southern option at £300 million. An operational scenario based on the southern route but serving Cambridge and not Stansted was stated to have the best financial case. The northern route, though the cheapest, was not fully pursued as it was considered to be outside the aims of the EWRC.

The possible Stansted Airport link would use the East Coast Main Line via the Hertford Loop Line and the Hertford East Branch Line to the West Anglia Main Line heading north and would involve the creation of a route from Hertford East station to Hertford North in Hertford with significant difficulties within Hertford and a new chord near Rye House railway station.

The Eastern section
From Cambridge to Norwich, Felixstowe and Ipswich using the existing Felixstowe Branch Line, Ipswich to Ely Line, and parts of the East Suffolk Line and Great Eastern Main Line. An hourly service in both directions between Cambridge and Ipswich was started in 2004. There is also an hourly passenger service between Norwich and Cambridge by Greater Anglia.

A section of Felixstowe Branch Line was recently doubled to allow freight trains to pass each other at Derby Road in Ipswich and there are plans to double of 8 km of route from Nacton to Trimley together with other work as part of the Felixstowe and Nuneaton freight capacity scheme. The 'bacon chord' in Ipswich is under construction to allow trains from Felixstowe to continue to the West Midlands without reversing at Ipswich.