SKIPTON-COLNE RAIL REOPENING JUST THE TICKET FOR SUSTAINABLE TOURISM

SELRAP Media Release 18th March 2023

The North's increasingly important tourism and hospitality sector would be a major winner from

reopening the Skipton-Colne Rail Line.

That’s the English Tourism Week (13-20 March) message from SELRAP (Skipton East

Lancashire Rail Action Partnership).

Renewal of the 12-mile link through the Pennines, closed in 1970, would give visitors from far

and wide quicker, more direct and more environmentally sustainable access to tourist

attractions, from coast to coast.

It aligns with the Yorkshire Dales National Park Management Plan 2025-2030, aiming to improve

access for visitors by public transport; currently, only two per cent arrive by train (based on the

last All Park Visitor Survey).

The scheme is also one of the Campaign for Better Transport’s priority lines for reopening.

Sebastian Fattorini from Skipton Castle, a long-standing supporter of the project, said: "Not

only would reopening the Skipton to Colne railway improve journeys for local residents, visitors

and commuters, it would potentially reduce congestion on the roads, benefiting everyone."

Skipton Boat Trips and the Herriots Hotel are among the other visitor attractions in "the

Gateway to the Dales" supporting the Skipton-Colne Line's revival, along with Skipton BID

(Business Improvement District).

Just over the border in Lancashire, the Colne BID is also convinced of the benefits the project

would bring. Manager Scott Smith said: "Colners are a proud bunch. We want to share our

brilliant independent shops, bars, restaurants and our unique culture with as many people as

possible, from Yorkshire and beyond. One of the key constraints on our local economy, however,

is a lack of East-West connectivity and the consequent chronic congestion on our roads - which

is bad for residents and bad for business."

Noel Hartley, business & operations manager at Keighley & Worth Valley Light Railway, one

of West Yorkshire’s key tourist attractions, said: 'Since the Keighley & Worth Valley Light

Railway re-opened in 1968 it has benefitted from good public transport links from Leeds,

Bradford and the Dales, however not so much from Pendle and further into the North West. A

reopened Skipton to Colne link would give more options for travel, increase visitor numbers to

North and West Yorkshire and improve the accessibility of our heritage attraction to all.”

Nick Tennant, SELRAP’s vice chair, said: "Ever since I was a child, my hometown of Earby has

suffered from lack of access to fast, frequent and affordable rail transport.

“Reconnecting economically isolated communities in East Lancashire with our neighbours in

North and West Yorkshire for the first time in 50 years, the renewal of the ‘Missing Link’ can't

come soon enough.

“The boost it would bring to tourism in the region is only part story. East to West and West to

East, it would give local people, particularly the young and those without access to a car, much-

needed access to educational, work and leisure opportunities that their counterparts in the cities

take for granted.”

ENDS

NOTES FOR EDITORS

The project has the strong support of local MPs and councillors from across the political

spectrum, including Jonathan Hinder (Pendle & Clitheroe), Sir Julian Smith KCB CBE

(Skipton & Ripon) and Robbie Moore (Keighley & Ilkley).

With the former track bed still largely intact, the Skipton-Colne Line could be operational

again within a decade. It is a low-risk option that is ready to go into the development

phase.

Unlike the long-neglected (and consequently underused) Colne-Preston Line, Northern

Rail’s “flagship”, electrified Airedale Line, terminating in Skipton is thriving. Alongside

providing quick access to the commercial hubs of Leeds and Bradford, it offers speedy

connections to London (Kings Cross), with a journey time of under three hours.

Half of Lancashire's population lives within two miles of the county's Preston to Colne

central rail belt.

For further information, contact:

Nick Tennant: 0791 8667213 nicktennant123@btinternet.com

Jane Wood (SELRAP media officer): 01282 815787 jvbwood@hotmail.co.uk

SKIPTON CASTLE and DAFFODILS