The direct rail link from the Wensleydale Railway into Northallerton – the South Curve – has been closed for many years. Trains can only access the Wensleydale Railway from the south by reversing into a loop north of Northallerton. Occasional freight, engineering and excursion trains do use this connection, but running regular passenger services into Northallerton is impractical.

It is a priority now to reopen the South Curve and re-lay a link into Northallerton station – or as close as possible to it. Regular branch line trains could then connect with the main line trains again, providing a convenient link for passengers to and from Wensleydale.

Aerial photograph of the South Curve courtesy of www.webbaviation.co.uk

There is a massive amount of work being undertaken to prepare the business case for this and consider the technical options. A group of “Virtual Volunteers” is working together by e-mail to research the case and prepare the evidence needed, consider service options, look for funding possibilities etc. Another group of volunteers has been translating a major study undertaken by Dresden Technical University that examines the potential usage. Officers from the relevant public bodies (including Network Rail) are helping to define more clearly what it is that needs to be done to make a convincing business case.

On the face of it the argument is simple – by linking back to Northallerton we will be able to restore through trains, greatly increasing the convenience to passengers, the viability of the whole of the Wensleydale Railway and the number of visitors to the dale.  It will also bring more passengers onto National Rail and could be an exemplar of community rail re-openings for people around the country to follow.

However, it is a big challenge because it will also mean having to look again at the whole infrastructure for the 5 miles and 70 chains between Northallerton and Leeming Bar, deal with technical issues around Northallerton and the East Coast Main Line and raise the necessary money.

Our immediate needs are:

• to develop the “Virtual Volunteer” team to help on aspects of the business case etc
• to find the smaller sums of funding for the technical studies that are needed at each stage of the process
• to get support from local people, decision-makers and influencers

We need to do all of these things without taking away from the day to day support for the current railway and its needs.

Any donations should be sent directly to the Wensleydale Railway marked clearly “for Northallerton rail link” at the following address:

Wensleydale Railway plc
Leeming Bar Station
Leases Road
Leeming Bar
Northallerton
North Yorkshire
DL7 9AR