Mainline rail services between Norwich and Sheringham ‘could’ be extended to Holt
Network Rail’s former route director for
East Anglia made the comments after he was appointed general manager of
the neighbouring heritage line.
Mainline rail services between Norwich and Sheringham
“could” be extended to Holt, according to Network Rail’s former route
director for East Anglia.
Andrew Munden made the comments after he was appointed general manager of the neighbouring heritage line.
Looking East from the level crossing, a class 156 diesel operated by Anglia Greater Anglia up from Norwich at the Sheringham Station on Network Rail
He
revealed his first involvement with the North Norfolk Railway was on
the project to reinstate the level crossing, which links the Poppy Line
with the Bittern Line, in Sheringham back in 2010.
That allowed
the launch of special steam train excursions between Holt and Cromer
last year, which it is hoped to extend to Norwich and beyond.
About turn and looking West on the new level crossing, the eastern end of the North
Norfolk Railway with a vintage DMU as it prepared to depart for Holt
When
asked if he ever considered extending mainline services onto the
heritage line, Mr Munden smiled: “It could happen, yes - with a bit of
willpower.”
And he added: “It is without doubt one of the best (railways) in the country.”
Network Rail is responsible for maintaining and improving the country’s rail network.
Mr
Munden, who took up his new role on the North Norfolk Railway at the
start of the year, was speaking at the unveiling of the heritage line’s
latest attraction - four newly-restored suburban coaches which went out
of service in the late 1970s.
Mr
Munden said: “It’s great fun after 36 years on the mainline railway,
this is a really great job with a smashing bunch of people here.
“These
(new carriages) are quite special; we’ve got a very old set of coaches,
which worked the London area in the 1920s, these are what took over
from those in the 1950s and were in service until the late 1970s when
they in turn were superseded by modern electric trains.
“So here
on the railway, we can demonstrate the development of suburban train
travel and, up at Holt, we have an exhibition in a coach which shows how
suburban rail travel developed.”
Earlier this year, rail
passengers called for improved public transport links between Holt and
Sheringham following concerns that the current bus service is leaving
some stranded.
A study found that just three trains out of 17 are
met with a bus connection to Holt within what it states is a reasonable
time of between six and 15 minutes, and that is reduced to just one on a
Sunday.
Meanwhile, despite being described as the smallest rail
terminus in the country, rail passenger numbers have increased 170 per
cent at Sheringham’s mainline station over the last 17 years.
One
of the report’s authors, David Hurdle, a transport planning consultant
and resident of Sheringham, said: “We have analysed every single bus and
train journey to ascertain the connection times at Sheringham station
and the results clearly demonstrate that a reasonable interchange time
is currently a matter of pot luck and that buses rarely connect off and
onto trains.”
NOW SEE THE LATEST ON THE NEW FOCUS FLICKR SITE:
Another album of images from the North Norfolk Railway accompanys today's posting on the website. This time it is a selection of diesel-powered engines from recent years. These can now be viewed by clicking
here