Campaign begins to see trains return to Peterhead, Fraserburgh and Banchory
'Campaign for North East Rail' say Aberdeenshire cannot go another 20 years without major improvements to rail connections - such as extending the line back to cut-off communities.
Last updated 9th Apr 2021
Community group 'Campaign for North East Rail' are proposing the region gets more ambitious with it's railway expansion plans - by returning trains to Peterhead, Fraserburgh and Banchory.
Suggestions also include an integrated bus service to Braemar.
Current suggestions from NESTRANS - an Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire partnership that develops strategies for transport in the area - are not ambitious enough according to the group.
Nestrans have recommended installing additional stations in Cove and Newtonhill, but this wouldn't extend the track itself.
The group plan to launch a petition for public support and have contacted the candidates in the Holyrood election in the North East for their help.
They then hope to write a letter, along with cross-party support, to send to the Transport Minister in the new government after the election.
Co-Chair, and train driver, Jordan Jack told Northsound:
"Since I've become a train driver, I've learned more about the technical side of things, and I've begun to learn just how workable re-opening the lines actually is.
"Recently NESTRANS published their regional transport study, and in it they conclude that re-opening the Buchan line is poor value for money - and as such they are not recommending re-opening any lines in Aberdeenshire at all up to 2040."
Jack says whilst they support and include in their own plans the recommendations for accessibility changes and two new stations - he says: "We just don't think that's acceptable.
"This period is the most critical time we have for fighting the climate emergency, and we need to get people out of cars and into public transport, and the only we were are going to do that is by providing fast, modern reliable public transport."
The group argue that the NESTRANS conclusion is based on studies undertaken in 2017, but they feel that data from the expansion of the Borders railway has out-performed predicted passenger numbers from similar studies.
They also claim to have produced a technical proposal that they say counters every issue brought up in the 2017 report, with submissions from railway engineers, others involved in the railway industry and other transport experts.
Jack says they plan to release that no later than "two weeks before the election".