Cash pledged in full as Oswestry to Gobowen rail link to cost between £5.3m and £14.6m
A light railway linking Oswestry with the mainline at Gobowen would cost anything between £5.3 and £14.6 million to built, with operating costs estimated at £196,000 a year.
North Shropshire MP Helen Morgan released the figures after being told by the rail minister that the project will be funded to delivery.
And she said the scheme's strategic outline business case had scored highly for value for money.
In a letter to Mrs Morgan, rail minister Huw Merriman said he was ‘delighted to be able to confirm that the project will be funded to delivery’, with Network Rail to lead the next stage of work alongside Cambrian Heritage Railways.
Mrs Morgan said documents from the Restoring Your Railways fund which support the case for a station, and outline the costs for reintroducing services to Oswestry, with a stop at The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital in Gobowen, had a capital expense of £5.3m to £14.6m, and yearly operating costs of £196,000.
The Restoring Your Railways fund document also said that when it comes to economic considerations, the scheme’s strategic outline business case scored highly with ‘Very High and Financially Positive’ value for money, she said.
The next step for the project is to engage with potential rail operators and put together a full business case.
The scheme will be funded by the Restoring Your Railways Fund after an outline business case was submitted last year.
Mrs Morgan, said: “It is fantastic to see the Department for Transport commit to getting Oswestry back on the mainline, and that the Government has finally realised how much value the project will bring.
"All the hard work done by Roger Date and the team at Cambrian Heritage Railways has led to this glowing review. The case for reopening the line is overwhelming and the bid submitted last year made that clear.
“We need to go full steam ahead in getting Oswestry reconnected to the mainline. The economic benefits to the vitality of the town would be huge, helping people get into town, out to work, and creating enormous numbers of opportunities for our young people.”
