Thinking along the right lines

RE: RE-OPENING of Old Rail Lines.

Nice to see that Brownhills and Aldridge got full media attention this week as two of the stations the Association Of Train Operating Companies would like to see re-opened. As part of a through rail route from Walsall to Lichfield, a re-opened Brownhills line could be part-funded by freight operators, too.

Aldridge has needed a station for years, but Network Rail always maintained that the line was 'too busy with freight' and had 'no capacity for passenger services'.

Major investment is needed as both projects complement each other. The Brownhills route could provide the capacity to take some freight from the Aldridge line, allowing the passenger services to run.

I don't think for one minute that a branch line from Walsall to Brownhills would be commercially viable, but let's hope Network Rail and the ATOCs see the bigger picture.

Kevin Ellis, Walsall