Update

1.

March 2003

The Waverley Route

Following several years of campaigning, there is now a chance that 'The Waverley' railway route linking Edinburgh to Galashiels and Hawick in the Scottish Borders will be reopened.  This line, which used to link linked Edinburgh and Carlisle closed in 1969.

Transport Minister, Iain Gray, told the Scottish Parliament in March 03 that if a business case can be made for reopening of the line, then funding could be made available.

New stations are proposed at Shawfair, Eskbank, Newtongrange, Gorebridge, Galashiels and Tweedbank.  The 36 mile journey from Edinburgh to Galashiels would take 45 minutes. 

The total cost of the project has been estimated to be £126m.  If the project is given permission to proceed, work on reconstruction could begin as early as 2006.

Edinburgh Evening News  6 March 2003, p.5

Update

2.

September 2003

Draft Legislation

A draft Bill proposing a £130m rail link from Edinburgh to the Scottish Borders will submitted to the Scottish Parliament on 11 September 03.

Proposers believe that it might be possible to open the route by 2008. Trains last ran on the line 35 years ago.

It has also been suggested that the project should have a second phase, extending the line further south to Hawick.

Edinburgh Evening News  9 September 2003,  p.16

Update

3.

August 2004

Feasibility Studies

The Waverley Railway Partnership is continuing to promote the reopening of a railway route to the Scottish Borders, with proposed new stations at Eskbank, Newtongrange, Gorebridge, Galashiels and Tweedbank.

An earlier report had suggested that this 30-mile route would be too costly; but it is now reported that a study by public sector consultants, Tribal HCH predicts sustained economic, environmental and social benefits from such a line.  The study predicts that it would result in the building of 1,800 new houses and creation of 550 new jobs.

Edinburgh Evening News  30 August 2004,  p.9

Update

4.

March 2005

Funding

The Scottish Executive announced in March 2005 that it had provisionally agreed to provide £115m out of a total cost of £151m reopen the Waverley route between Edinburgh and the Scottish Borders.

The route is expected to be re-opened by 2008, from Edinburgh Waverley, the line using existing stations at Brunstane and Newcraighall, and new stations at Shawfair, Eskbank, Newtongrange, Gorebridge, Galashiels and Tweedbank.

Some concern has been expressed about the proposed 61-minute journey time for the 35-mile route, and there has been a demand to also include an express service with fewer stops.

Edinburgh Evening News  15 March 2005,  p.16-17

Update

5.

July 2005

Parliamentary Committee Approval

A special committee of MSPs at the Scottish Parliament,  set up to consider the rail route from Edinburgh to the Galashiels and Tweedbank, gave their approval to the route in July 2003., including the addition of a station at Stow, mid-way between Gorebridge and Galashiels.

The Waverley Railway (Scotland) Bill will be debated by the full Parliament after the summer recess.  The committee referred to a five-month delay due to the Borders Council failing to notify the owners of 130 properties in Gorebridge and Galashiels of its plans when the Bill was first introduced in September 2003.  However, the line is still believed to be  on schedule to re-open in 2008 if it gains parliamentary approval.

Edinburgh Evening News  22 July 2005,  p.7

and Daily Mail  23 July 2005,  p.39

Update

6.

July 2005

Call for a 'Fast Train'

Plans to provide a half-hourly service between the Scottish Borders and Edinburgh with trains taking 61 minutes for the journey, an average of 35mph, and stopping at all 8 stations en route have been criticised  by rail lobby groups and environmentalists.

The Waverley Rout Trust, which first campaigned for the re-opening of the route, TRANSform Scotland and the Capital Rail Action Group argue that in order to persuade motorists to change to travelling by train there should be an hourly fast service, with fewer stops, taking only 45 minutes for the journey.

It is still proposed to re-open the route in 2008.  The proposed stations on the line and times to travel from Edinburgh are:

Edinburgh Evening News  February 1, 2006:  p.17

Update

7.

March 2006

Delay until 2011

After studying a detailed audit of all the Scottish Executive's major transport commitments, Tavish Scott, Transport Minister in the Scottish Parliament announced, in March 2006 that the Waverley link to the Scottish Borders is now expected to open again in 2011, three years later than planned.

Edinburgh Evening News  March 16, 2006,  p.11

Update

8.

May 2006

A Line to Where?

The latest controversy reported in the press concerns how far south from Edinburgh the Waverley Route should go.

- A Parliamentary Committee have stated that the route should extend to Tweedbank, and that there should be three stations in the Borders:   Stow, Galashiels and Tweedbank (as in the list above). 

- The Parliamentary Bill was approved in principle in September 2005.  Final approval is anticipated soon, but the Bill currently before parliament will have to be amended if Stow is to be included as one of the stations on the line.

The Scotsman:  May 10, 2006,  p.16

- Protesters, including 'Save Scott's Countryside' and 'Railcheck' believe that the opening of the route to the Borders could result in thousands of new commuters' homes being built in the Borders, a development that they would not welcome.  They believe that the new line should extend only from Edinburgh to Gorebridge.

Edinburgh Evening News:  May 11, 2006,  p.1

Update

9.

June 2006

Scottish Parliament Approval

The Scottish Parliament approved the Bill to re-open the Waverley Line.  It has pledged funding of £155m.  The vote was 114:1 in favour.

The line is also to receive funding of £11.3m from Edinburgh, Midlothian and Borders councils and £7.4m from developers.

Doubts

However, Scottish Nationalist, Christine Grahame, has questioned whether or not the line will actually go ahead.  She refers to:

-  an Amendment passed by the Scottish Parliament, increasing the time allowed for compulsory purchase of the land needed for the line from 5 years to 10 years.

-  the fact that the funding to from the Scottish Parliament has been capped even if costs increase, and this funding is subject to a suitable business case being made for the line.

Edinburgh Evening News:  June 15, 2006,  p.17

Update

10.

June 2006

Scottish Parliament Approval

It was expected that the Scottish Parliament's Executive would contribute £154m towards re-opening of the line from Edinburgh to the Scottish Borders, and that the balance of £21m would be met by local authorities.

However, Transport Minister, Stewart Stevenson announced this week that:

-  It will be more expensive that first envisaged to open the line to the Scottish Borders.  Full details will not be known until Autumn 2007.

-   Any shortfall must be met by the local authorities.

-   He does not believe that a completion date of 2011 is now achievable.

Council leaders are now seeking an urgent meeting with the Scottish Executive on this topic.

Edinburgh Evening News:  June 15, 2006,  p.17

Update

11.

January 2009

Work to Begin in 2010

Line Due to Open 2013

In August 2008, Transport Minister, Stewart Stevenson had told the Scottish Parliament that work was due to begin on reinstating the 35-mile railway route from Edinburgh Waverley to Tweedbank in 2011.

Yesterday, on the 40th anniversary of the last passenger train to run on the line, he took the opportunity to tel Parliament that the work would in fact begin in 2010.

Edinburgh Evening News:  January 7, 2009:  p.12.

Update

12.

September 2009

Fears

The Scottish National Party has announced the Scottish Parliament's new draft budget.  It plans scrap plans for a rail link to Glasgow Airport, and there are now fears that reinstating the line from Edinburgh to the Scottish Borders might become the next casualty.

A spokesman for the Scottish Government confirmed that the project remained on the agenda, at an expected cost of £235-295 and an expected completion date of 2013.

The Evening News, in its editorial column points out that the business case for this line has never been fully proved, and that 10,000 new houses were expected to be built along the line in Midlothian and the Borders, but this housebuilding has now all but stopped, due to the recession.

Edinburgh Evening News:  September 21, 2009

Update

12.

September 2009

Fears

The Scottish National Party has announced the Scottish Parliament's new draft budget.  It plans scrap plans for a rail link to Glasgow Airport, and there are now fears that reinstating the line from Edinburgh to the Scottish Borders might become the next casualty.

A spokesman for the Scottish Government confirmed that the project remained on the agenda, at an expected cost of £235-295 and an expected completion date of 2013.

The Evening News, in its editorial column points out that the business case for this line has never been fully proved, and that 10,000 new houses were expected to be built along the line in Midlothian and the Borders, but this housebuilding has now all but stopped, due to the recession.

Edinburgh Evening News:  September 21, 2009

Update

13.

Update

November 2012

It's a while since I last updated the web site with the latest news of the proposed 'Waverley Route' from Edinburgh to the Scottish Borders, so it's good to be able to provide another update now, taking extracts from an article in Mainline News.

Steam to Run on New Waverley Route

"Steam and tourist trains will be allowed to operate on the new Borders Rail Link, which should see its first passenger trains running from Edinburgh Waverley to Tweedbank Station outside Galashiels in 2015.

Scottish transport minister Keith Brown made the announcement as he signed an agreement for building the £350 million 30 mile railway with Network Rail on November 6.

The minister confirmed that a revised specification has been agreed for Tweedbank station to include a 295-metre platform.  The change came after a long campaign by a range of bodies including Borders Council, pressure group The Campaign for Border Rail, local MPs and tourism interests.

They all argued that swapping the planned six-carriage platform at Tweedbank for one capable of handling steam and charter trains would boost the local economy by an estimated £500,000 per year."

Campaign for Trains from Borders to Carlisle

"The Campaign for Borders Rail says that it will nor rest from its ultimate goal of restoring trains over the whole route south of Tweedbank to Carlisle.  ...  The group is proposing an early relaying of track from Tweedbank to Melrose after the opening in 2015 as a first phase in a planned reopening to Carlisle."

Extracts from an article in Mainline News compiled by Cedric Johns  -  with acknowledgement to Rodney Marshall, Luton, Bedfordshire, England, for sending me a copy of the article:  Dec 17, 2012