East West Rail joint delivery board announce team to develop new, electrified railway between Bedford and Oxford

Senior representatives from the East West Rail Consortium, Network Rail and the Department for Transport have formed a Joint Delivery Board to oversee and facilitate the development of a new, electric railway line between Bedford and Oxford with train services due to start operating in December 2017.

They met today at the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre together with Iain Stewart MP the Chairman of the East West Rail All Party Parliamentary Group and other representatives of the group, stakeholders and strategic partners.

The board has been formed as a result of the recent announcement by the Secretary of State for Transport of the Government’s support for the western section of the East West Rail scheme that also included a commitment to electrify part of the route.

The East West Railway re-opens ten miles of closed railway to create a new electric railway between Oxford and Bedford. It upgrades almost nine miles of railway to link in the diesel lines from Aylesbury to enable new diesel and electric train services.

The Board, chaired by Cllr Peter Hardy (Buckinghamshire County Council), met to agree the roles of the respective organisations who will work together with the joint goal of having the service operational by December 2017.

Guests had the opportunity to view a section of the route that is currently either mothballed or used only by freight trains, but which will become an important route for passenger services within the region and as part of the National Strategic Rail Network.