An industry expert has slammed the idea of reinstating the Island Line connections to Newport and Ventnor as ‘a hopeless fantasy’ as it is revealed that the plans have been scrapped by the Department for Transport.
The aim of the project was to reinstate the disused rail line between the Sandown and Newport, via Blackwater, in turn providing a frequent, fast and reliable railway service from Ryde Pier Head back into Newport.
Extending the existing Island Line to Newport had been identified as the most viable element of the project and had an estimated infrastructure cost of £67 million totalling up to a potential £110 million.
Despite this though – in the ‘Restoring Your Railway’ report released earlier this week – the plans were dropped.
Of the first original 10 successful ideas pitched back in May 2020, the reinstatement of the Island Line is 1 of 4 in total that has since been axed.
Island MP Bob Seely – back in July 2021 – said:
“This bid is an opportunity to bring about major change and regenerate our towns. It is a vision designed to unlock the Island’s growth and development potential by using transport to connect people to businesses, jobs and education.
Regardless of the optimism shown by Island MP’s last year, the decision was clear-cut.
On his blog, Roger French – former managing director of Brighton & Hove Bus boss and a transport expert has said:
“Although it doesn’t mean all is lost as the promoters may be able to secure funding to progress the projects elsewhere from other sources. For others, like reinstating branch lines on the Isle of Wight were always a hopeless fantasy and frankly should never have attracted funding from the “Ideas Fund” to progress any form of business case at all.”
Agree with him. Just like the Newport City status bid. Waste of time, resources and money.
Some realism at last
They have enough problems trying to go from Shanklin to Ryde pier head !!!! Without other links…
Spend the money on the Hospital and affordable housing for islanders……
If it truly were ‘affordable housing for islanders’ then most people would agree with you. Unfortunately, most of the ‘affordable housing’ seems to go to people brought over from the mainland who bring with them a whole range of problems.
Agree. They transfer problem families and individuals who have been moved from the various Council areas and housing on the mainland due to criminal behaviour.
Let’s make them the IOW problem. The Council don’t care, they get paid ‘much’ for taking them and housing them here.
This has got to stop. Way too much violence and drugs here. The Police force can’t cope and island residents have quite frankly had enough of reading about the increasing crime levels on the island now.
. Get real. There are enough hill billy cork heads that cause problems over here not just from the mainland! You lot are quick enough to demand things such as fuel that is refined on the mainland. food manufactured on the mainland, medications oh and doctors and other healthcare professionals that are all trained on the mainland. Think wisely before you open your narrow minded mouth. As this island would be in a worse state than it already is with out folk from the evil mainland.
I agree with you Catherine and Sunshine, seen this very thing happen for myself, stop importing the undesirables. As for Get Real, you need to…..well, Get Real. Yes the Islands always had it’s problems but 30/40/50+ years ago it thrived with much less intense trouble. But it doesn’t sound like you’ve been here long enough to know that. And it’s caulkheads not cork heads….lol.
It would be lovely to have a little train. They are a blast in Italy. My favourite little connection is 30 miles ride from the city of Perugia to town of Castillo Del Lago for about €10, it goes all around the lake (said “lago”) and there’s no need for a car = ideal for holiday places <3
Maybe one day UK will be capable, fingers crossed.
Too much greed in the government and council’s for the UK to be capable. They are take not giver’s
This was just a soundbite from seldom seen seely. £50k of tax payers money wasted on a mate of his no doubt. But remember, thousands on the island think he’s brilliant
It wouldn’t run most of the time anyway, short of staff.
Some body got paid for the survey, and they paid them knowing full well this was not going to happen. It could have easily been done for nothing by a man walking his dog. Tax payers money being thrown away. ‘Jobs for the boys’
It was a non-non, in one hand the government says build more houses, the train would have been a great solution, but that turned down, whats our MP doing about it. Need to get cars off the road, ask any asthma suffers about ‘air quality’.
Yes we need to reduce using the car especially when there are other forms of transport, the idea that the government was green has gone out of the window a long time ago.
It was a nice pipe dream. Would have been good. But as others have said, never going to be practical and a waste of money looking into it.
Sandown to Newport was deffinately a no no, too many level crossings, that was why it closed in the first place. BR wanted to keep it and close the Havenstreet line but it was too expensive to deal with all the level crossings, but Shanklin to Ventnor was perfectly possible, tell Southern water to remove their sewage pipe from Ventnor tunnel or makre it train friendly.
I am from ventnor, and the amount of traffic on the roads now have Tripled in the last 40 years, and if you look properly at the amount of old lines what could be used, that cuts the cost to rebuilding the Railways around the Island, and then take the amount of HGV vehicles off the roads so that in itself is worth every Penny that was spent on the rebuild. Then think about if you want to go to Newport, say from Ryde it would not cost you £15 return or a taxi for £30 and if we make it affordable and safe, everyone will get a great deal of pleasure and take a lot of things off the road, if that’s what everyone wants, the cost of petrol
Is sky rocketing so why are we all
Just letting government say no!
We all live together here on the Isle of Wight, so when you are waiting at a cold White bus stop,
Just think, you could be in a warm station, waiting for a train which is quick, warm and safe.
There is a lot more that could be done, but it is still DOWN TO YOU!
So happy days, or long days,
I am sorry but I’m all for a new train line what we can all use.
Back in july 2021 the Island line had staff to run it they can only blame themselves the number of times in last few months we have read of delays in service destroyed trust in the Island line why invest
Pathetic…. I remember this story breaking over the past few years. Any long term islander would know these routes haven’t been viable for years. Plus, they can’t even manage to run the 8 miles of track we do have. We are being run by incompetents. In fact, all the islands transport services are sub-standard.
Did Bob Seely really think Boris and his Tory toffs would come good and provide the money for this project? Boris Johnson says whatever comes into his head at the time of talking to someone and makes many promises he has no intention of keeping.
Pie in the sky from the get go. All this island needs is a proper traffic free cycling infrastructure without dog walkers and horses getting in the way.