'Reversing Beeching': Anything achieved? | Ep 20

Richard Beeching's famous report of the 1960s is this episode's topics, and in particular, the Government's proposals, announced four years ago, to reopen lines and stations closed by Beeching through the Restoring Your Railway fund. We ask whether it has achieved anything (and the conclusion is very little) but then Nigel really sets Richard's "Victor Meldrew" going by talking about the Borders Railway to Carlisle and the possible reopening of the Peak District line through Bakewell and Monsal Dale.

Richard talks about his visit to Wales & Borders with Nick Millington MBE, Route Director at Network Rail and finds out about lagoons, climate models and vegetation control. In particular Richard is amazed at the complex multi-agency approach to securing ecology licences and concludes, perhaps controversially, that it's time to let Network Rail self certify. After all, they can do it with safety critical matters so why not when it comes to clearing dying or dead Ash trees?

Along the way Nigel & Richard discuss how to decide whether something is strategic (they have a different view), what Confirmation Bias means (and why it's an issue) and how on earth anything is going to happen when the cost for a new station at Devizes alone was looking like it could hit £65m!

In this episode…

00:00 Intro & viewers comments
04:46 A day on Wales & Borders - what did Richard get to see?
07:50 The complexity of the process of securing ecology licences
08:46 Time to let Network Rail self certify for Ecology licences?
11:15 More Railway Explained videos to come - and where to find them on YouTube!
11:46 The Cumbrian Railway Association - an introduction
12:20 CRA update on plans to reopen Borders Railway to Carlisle. Why not since the first section has been a success!
13:37 Richard explains what winds him up about railway reopenings!
16:14 Confirmation Bias - and why it's a problem, plus Richard and Nigel debate what it means to be 'strategic'!
21:15 Reversing Beeching - has anything happened?
23:14 Why do the words 'Beeching reopenings' cause ordinary people to react in weird ways?
25:34 Reviewing the list of schemes that have made it so far (on a list)
26:46 Everyone's Railway - the railways are good at some things but not others
28:03 Devizes Gateway - do platforms really have to cost THAT much?!
35:15 Nigel lights the blue touch paper and mentions reopening the Monsal Trail to trains.....
39:35 Good News - the story of a boy gifted a model railway after 58 years.
43:00 Closing comments

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