Highland rail campaigners on the Far North Line hail cross-party support for investment on region’s railway network
Rail campaigners fighting for vital improvements to train services in the Highlands are “delighted” at recent cross-party calls for fresh investment in the region.
The Friends of the Far North Line have been campaigning for key infrastructure improvements for several decades, with new passing loops and stations among their hopes for communities in the area.
These have included the long-standing push for a new passing loop between Inverness and Beauly, which it is believed will help improve reliability of services on the Far North and Kyle lines by avoiding knock-on disruption to subsequent trains whenever an individual service runs late.
But despite widespread calls for the new loop, and Network Rail Scotland even going so far as to submit planning applications directly connected to such a project, no spades have ever entered the ground.
And the project has seemingly been left in limbo, with no movement taking place - prompting continued calls for action.
However, a Highland MSP’s motion last week sparked a Scottish Parliament debate on investment on part of the Highland network, and won vocal backing from politicians from across the political divide.
The Friends of the Far North Line now hopes this cross-party support might finally lead to the spotlight being shone on some of the region’s much-needed rail upgrades.
MSP Ariane Burgess - a Highlands and Islands MSP for the Scottish Greens - lodged her motion, entitled Rail Investment (Highlands), on October 2.
Although the motion specifically referred to the Highland Main Line between Perth and Inverness and many of the comments reflected that, mention was made of the other Highland railway routes, which include the Far North Line.
Ms Burgess’s motion argued that dualling and electrifying the Highland Main Line would "improve wealth distribution, reducing its concentration in the Central Belt and spreading it along the main line to the thriving city of Inverness, into the Highlands and beyond"
The dualling of the Highland Main Line was one of several key transport priorities identified by the Scottish Government in the late 2000s. Other priorities at that time included a new bridge across the Firth of Forth - which was subsequently realised by the Queensferry Crossing - and the dualling of the A9, which is under way.
However, no real movement has ever been made towards dualling the Highland Main Line.
Arguing that work to dual that line is important, Ms Burgess’s motion said that “businesses need a resilient and modern freight artery that links Inverness and Perth to the rest of Scotland, as well as to England and Wales” and that this is “about a vision for the Highlands in which rail is the backbone that connects our communities, supports our economy and delivers our climate ambitions”
In response to that motion, there were messages of support from Highland list MSP Jamie Halcro-Johnston (Conservative), the SNP’s Cumbernauld and Kilsyth MSP Jamie Hepburn, and Central Scotland MSP Richard Leonard (Labour).
Speaking in the debate, Mr Hepburn said that “the rail line that we are debating is a social and economic lifeline for the Highlands” and that “there have been decades of chronic underinvestment in our railways under previous United Kingdom governments”
Jamie Halcro-Johnston added that “the whole region could feel the benefit of improved rail infrastructure, whether that is about transporting freight or making it easier for visitors to get around”
He added that: “Rail will play a vital part in the economic approach to our region, and it has the potential to be transformative.”
Richard Leonard asked “if we can dual roads like the A9, why can we not dual railways like the main line to the Highlands?”
He continued: “We know that major exports from the Highlands and Islands, like whisky, shellfish, agricultural produce and timber, are nearly all transported at the moment on lorries, often on roads running alongside the Highland Main Line. If we are serious about getting traffic off our roads and on to our railways, we need to invest in rail and invest in electrification.”
Reacting to the positive cross-party comments, Friends of the Far North Line convener, Ian Budd, said: “The Friends of the Far North Line is delighted to hear cross-party support for, and understanding of, the need to bring railways in the Highlands up to the level of capacity, speed and comfort enjoyed elsewhere in Scotland, to address what we refer to as the Highlands Railway Deficit.”
He continued: “We hope that this marks the beginning of parliamentary recognition of how far behind the rest of Scotland the railways in the Highlands have fallen.”