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Reopening of rail line will be 'lasting benefit'

An unused rail route could be reopened to help 6,000 workers that are soon to be employed at a Wearside business park.

The line runs past the Houghton-Le-Spring Rainton Bridge business park, a new development with more than £100m investment, where new offices will see a huge increase in work force, including 900 Npower employees who will be moved from the current Newcastle office to the 22 hectare site.

The opening of the mothballed Leamside line has been discussed for years, but it could be a “lasting benefit” to the region, according to Coun Colin Wakefield from Sunderland city council.

He said: “A new station and a park-and-ride, with a bus service into Houghton town centre and on to Doxford International or direct to Doxford, would have a positive impact on traffic numbers for the line, travel flow, reduced CO2 emissions and greatly reduce the parking problems at Doxford, while avoiding a repeat of them at Rainton Bridge.”

The councilor argues that mismanagement of money by central government that was given to bankers and the decision to cut VAT rates has hindered transport links.

He said: ““It would have meant a lasting benefit and given us transport links that would serve us for 200 years.

“We can’t keep on with this issue of parking problems without long-term solutions to get people out of their cars.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .