Plans to restore railway link thrown into doubt

Plans to reconnect a town to the railway network have been thrown into doubt after the funding programme behind the scheme was scrapped.

The restoration of the rail link between Oswestry and Gobowen in Shropshire was approved last year as part of the Restoring Your Railway fund.

But the government confirmed it was cancelling the scheme, which would have funded 38 railway projects in total.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the cuts were needed to address a £21.9bn black hole in public finances, which included £1bn of unfunded projects next year.

She said the Department for Transport would assess each individual project as part of a review, in a bid to save £85m.

“If we cannot afford it, we cannot do it,” Ms Reeves told the House of Commons on Monday.

Helen Morgan, the Liberal Democrat MP for North Shropshire, said people in Oswestry would feel “badly let down” if the rail link was cancelled.

“Restoring a rail link to Oswestry is vitally important for the town’s economic and social vitality,” she said.

“A connection to the main line would be transformative for many businesses and residents, in particular bringing more opportunities for younger residents.”

The previous government had announced in October the Oswestry scheme would be fully funded to completion, following its decision to scrap the northern leg of HS2.

The line closed in 1966 during the Beeching cuts, which closed hundreds of lines and stations across the country.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.

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