Reopening of disused rail line 'not backed up' with funds

Plans to reconnect Oswestry to the main rail line have been put on hold, as funding from the cancelled HS2 project has "not been possible".

In an email to North Shropshire MP Helen Morgan, Rail Minister Lord Hendy said the proposal "had not been backed up" with necessary funds.

It would have reconnected the county's third largest town to the main line for the first time in sixty years.

The Department for Transport said it was a scheme that was announced by the previous government, but was unfunded.

The North Shropshire town has been without a station since the Beeching cuts in 1966, which saw more than half of the United Kingdom's train stations and 30% of its rail lines closed.

Work had been done in recent years to try to reopen it - with it most recently being run as a tourist attraction.

Speaking in September 2024, the parliamentary under-secretary for the Department for Transport, Lillian Greenwood offered her support to the scheme, citing it would enable "jobs, opportunities and growth" to the region.

Local MP Helen Morgan said she refuses for it to be the "end of the line" for the project.

"This would be transformational for Oswestry," the Liberal Democrat MP said.

"It would have made it a destination as it's better to connect onto the main line via a train, because you don't have to deal with all of the delays and disruption that bus routes come with.

"We need to look at alternative forms of funding as the business case was really strong."

"The previous government announced a number of schemes, including the Oswestry–Gobowen rail link, that were unfunded," a spokesperson for the Department for Transport said.

"We will continue to keep schemes under review for consideration for funding at future Spending Reviews."

To tackle the cancelled plans, Green councillors on Shropshire Council are calling for improved cycle and walking routes, or a more regular shuttle bus.

"I'm disappointed. We know it's a struggle as bus services have just been slowly eroded away," councillor Craig Emery said.

"We've got a world-renowned orthopaedic hospital and patients struggle to get from the Gobowen station over to there."

People who live in and around Oswestry are split on the decision.

"The town does surprisingly well, regardless, because of the fact that it's kept its identity," Tryfan Jones said.

"It hasn't become one of these towns that's just full of mainstream shops. There's still lots of little businesses here, so that's been good for the town.

"But everything helps, and I think having a train line into Oswestry would have benefited the town."

However, another resident thought it would have logistical issues with traffic.

"I think it's a shame that it's had to be cancelled, but I can't see how it would ever have worked, Steven Mitchell said.

"You've got to get the trains from one side of the A5 to the other, and it would have meant either lifting the A5 over the rail tracks or tunnelling under it.

"It's a huge expense and I don't think it would ever have happened."

Helen Evans used to have to walk along the road connecting the North Shropshire town to Gobowen, which she called "not very nice on a dark night."

"I think the fact that the town expanded so much is because we've got so much new housing on the outskirts," she said.

"It would have been better for employment as well, for people without cars to access jobs.

"I know if you come off the train and get off at Gobowen, there's not always a bus service available, so you have to get a taxi - which is not convenient."

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