Trains steam back into town after 30-year campaign

Heritage railway bosses say there is still more work to do after a decades-long campaign saw passenger trains returning to a town.

Jack Ilcyszyn, assistant general manager of the Churnet Valley Railway in Staffordshire, said he had not even been born when the idea of restoring the line to Leek was first suggested.

The heritage railway organisation has not always had a smooth ride, however, with a number of issues to navigate to get to this latest success, extending their existing track from Leekbrook into the town.

There also remains outstanding the not-inconsiderable issue of a station still to be built – the site of the original Leek Railway Station is now home to a Morrisons supermarket.

The last mainline passenger service into Leek from Uttoxeter was on 4 January 1965, according to the the railway's website, with goods traffic ending in July 1970.

Mr Ilcyszyn said the project really got under way at the end of 2019, supported with a grant of £1.4m of European funding.

It became stalled by the Covid pandemic and had been "an uphill battle" ever since, according to Mr Ilcyszyn.

After lockdown restrictions were lifted, planning permission for the scheme lapsed.

"We had all the materials, all the site, all the contracts signed but we now didn't have the planning application," Mr Ilcyszyn said.

Once planning approval was approved again, towards the end of 2022 further issues arose as they began laying track, due to sewage pipes running underground parallel to the planned railway line.

They were forced to change their original plans, extending the embankment further to one side to give extra space between the track and the pipework.

Mr Ilcyzsyn said this added about £500,000 to the project's costs and, overall, the scheme fell about a year and a half behind schedule.

But with the last rail laid, the first train ran along the newly extended section of railway on 31 December 2024, just in time to meet their funding deadline.

However, the project did also face political headwinds with a change in leadership at Staffordshire Moorlands District Council Mr Ilcyszyn said, with a new administration which he claimed was not supportive of the railway.

But the council's leader, Mike Gledhill, said the new section of railway was a valuable part of the area's tourism strategy.

"Churnet Valley Railway's extension to Leekbrook is a significant and welcomed development," he said.

He added there had been recent contact about possible future funding opportunities.

Extending the line cost about £1.8m so far but there are still plans by the group to build a new station and car parking facilities.

Taking the railway to Leek brings the added benefit, the organisation said, of connecting with existing amenities within the town, which are not available at other stops along the line.

Trains currently run to Leek during the railway's Steam Heritage Open Days.

The remaining journeys into Leek this year will take place on 27 September and 18 October, Mr Ilcyszyn added.

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