A presentation has been made in Parliament to give an update on the Skipton to Colne rail link project.
Keighley MP Robbie Moore was in attendance, along with Labour's prospective parliamentary candidate for the town John Grogan - who campaigned in support of the reopening of the line when he was the MP.
Mr Moore said: "It was great to receive an in-depth update from the Skipton East Lancashire Rail Action Partnership (SELRAP) in Parliament today. The reinstatement of a railway line between Skipton and Colne has my full support and would provide a much-needed boost to transport connectivity across our area.
"Forecasts presented to MPs in the meeting today estimate that the project would generate around 300,000 passengers per year, creating new rail links between East Lancashire, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, and helping to drive vital economic growth for the area.
"It was good to speak to the SELRAP team as well as the fantastic organisations in the room who are all behind the project to provide an outline as to why I believe this project is so important to get delivered. It is vital that East/ West connectivity is significantly improved - and I will continue to campaign on this issue and lobby the Department for Transport to review the Business Case for this project."
Mr Grogan said: "I helped organise a meeting in Parliament on this subject in 2018 and I am very grateful to have been included on this occasion. The project is one that needs cross party support over a number of Parliaments.
"The potential is there to give Keighley a big economic boost with a direct rail link across the Pennines A new line would also provide an additional important route for freight. Work has been done in the last few years to build the business case for the line. The best estimate of cost is now just under £300 million which is real value for money compared with other schemes.
"There would be a half hourly service on the Airedale line through Keighley, Steeton and Silsden and Skipton into East Lancashire. The next big decision would be a formal commitment from the Ministry of Transport to develop the project. This would then be followed by design work. I would urge the Government to make such a decision and agree on funding in the coming months.
"In 2028 we will be celebrating 150 years of the line and it would be good to at least have the line well underway by then if not completed. I have arranged to brief Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Transport Louise Haigh MP on all the details of restoring the Skipton Colne Link."
đď¸đGreat to receive in-depth update on Skipton-to-Colne Rail link project from Skipton East Lancashire Rail Action Partnership (SELRAP) in Parliament.
— Robbie Moore MP (@_RobbieMoore) February 22, 2023
Reinstatement of line has my full support. It would provide much-needed boost to transport connectivity & growth for our area. pic.twitter.com/AVrSb2vgp1
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