Network Rail will be displaying plans next week at the final part of consultation for the proposed Ipswich Chord – a £41m investment in Ipswich’s railway that could ultimately take up to 750,000 lorry journeys off the road every year.
Two public consultations have already taken place, at which Network Rail outlined its plans to build a new 1km stretch of track, or ‘chord’ line, north of Ipswich goods yard linking the East Suffolk line and Great Eastern main line on part of the site of the former Harris meat factory.
The chord will remove the need for freight trains travelling to and from the Port of Felixstowe to use the sidings adjacent to Ipswich station as a turning point, eliminating a major bottleneck on the busy Great Eastern main line and freeing up capacity for both passenger and freight services.
Andrew Munden, Network Rail’s route director for Anglia, said:
“We thank those who have already made a valuable contribution to the development of this vital project. Feedback suggests that the overwhelming majority support our plans that could take up to 750,000 lorry journeys off the road every year by 2030, reducing traffic congestion, improving road safety and reducing carbon emissions by around three-quarters.”
Freight trains from the Anglia region currently have to travel down the busy Great Eastern main line and through London to reach the north.
Once Network Rail’s upgrade of the line from Felixstowe to Nuneaton via Ipswich, Ely and Peterborough is complete in 2014, the route will provide more direct journeys for freight trains travelling from the Port of Felixstowe to the Midlands, North West and Scotland, and the potential for faster freight journeys to Yorkshire.
The responses to the first two phases of consultation showed around 90% of respondents supported the scheme. In response to the first consultation, and at the request of local and regional authorities and many of those attending the exhibition, Network Rail was able to confirm that it would double-track the chord from the outset.
Before Network Rail submits its final plans to the Infrastructure Planning Commission in late May, it will be sharing the latest details with local residents and interested parties.
If the plans are approved, work on the scheme is due to start in 2012 and will be completed in early 2014.
