CAMPAIGNERS who want the government and rail industry to reopen a 12-mile link between Skipton and East Lancashire have met the new Labour MP for Pendle and Clitheroe for talks and a walk on the old route, which was shut in the 1970s.

Members of the Skipton East Lancashire Rail Action Partnership (SELRAP) met Jonathan Hinder MP in his office in Colne and then showed him a section of the old track bed.

SELRAP wants the Skipton to Colne link reopened to allow for fast trans-Pennine train services between east Lancashire boroughs such as Pendle, Hyndburn and Burnley to Skipton, Bradford and Leeds.

East Lancashire has some of the poorest boroughs in the country, with limited business and infrastructure investment and weak house prices, SELRAP says. Limited transport connections are seen as factors by the campaigners. Much of the Colne branch line east of Burnley and serving towns including Nelson and Brierfield is just single track with limited train timetables. Yet the old track bed remains in many sections and new extra lines could be laid, campaigners say.

Their long-term aim is to expand connections from west to east, including Blackpool, Preston, Liverpool, Bradford, Leeds and Hull, through a new Skipton - Colne section.

Speaking this week, Jane Wood, a SELRAP member from Barnoldswick, said: “Representatives from the campaign met the new MP Jonathan Hinder in his constituency office in Colne recently. They outlined for him the strong business case for the re-opening of the rail line between Colne and Skipton.

“Mr Hinder agreed that it was a positive meeting and said he looked forward to working with SELRAP to finally get this project over the line as soon as possible. Follow-up action by him will include writing to the government about pursuing the next steps to carry out the required new feasibility study.

“After the meeting the MP toured the track bed near Colne with Chris Oakley and Peter Bryson, the chairman of SELRAP. Our group believes this line should be re-instated as a strategic rail route connecting communities across the north of England to provide a much needed diversionary cross-Pennine rail route. This would ease congestion on other routes which will need upgrading to accommodate the growing demand for more rail capacity across the region.”

Last month in Colne, a SELRAP meeting heard from a rail industry journalist that the Colne-Skipton project could be ‘third in line ‘ for support from the new government. The journalist said it would be relatively cheap to build and would bring significant economic benefits to many parts of the north. Members of SELRAP also recently attended a meeting of Skipton Town Council and were given the backing of councillors for their campaign.

Campaigners say Lancashire and Yorkshire rail lines deserve investment to offer alternative routes for passenger and freight trains to congested lines in Greater Manchester. And businesses such as Drax Energy and the Skipton Building Society support SELRAP’s campaign.