clearing trackbed trespassers!

Demolition of the Waverley RAILWAY, early 70s

Demolition of trackbed TRESPASSERS, 2012

We had quite a lot of discussion about trackbed trespassers - ie new build houses etc - on the New S&D blog, one particularly vociferous 'anti' claimed that we couldn't use compulsory purchase and, even if we did, nobody would take any notice of the orders!!

Back on planet Earth this is exactly what is happening on the Waverley route, now being rebuilt south of Edinburgh. Up to 60 houses have been purchased and are now being demolished to make way for the trains. This is something we will see all over the country in the coming years.

Anyone stupid enough to have purchased a house built on a railway trackbed only has themselves to blame for this sad state of affairs. Whatever possessed them to trespass in this way - surely the dullest person realises that where there was once a railway there will be a railway again? It's clear now that just about every rail closure from 1948 (and many earlier) were TEMPORARY. Why on earth was building ever allowed on these essential pieces of infrastructure?

The Waverley line was an insane closure, a double track main line providing an excellent alternative route between England and Scotland - and the only viable transport alternative in an average Scottish winter - closed against HUGE local opposition, robbing the large towns of Hawick and Galashiels from modern transport, not to mention dozens of smaller communities along the route and throwing the whole area a hundred years into the past - and all coordinated from London! What were they thinking?

The line had to reopened a few weeks after closure as all the roads were blocked by snow! Humiliated BR then quickly lifted a lot of the track, just so it could not be used again.

And then, years later, some idiots built NEW houses on the trackbed!! And bigger idiots went ahead and bought the houses, with the line not long lifted and an ever increasing demand for the line to be rebuilt.

Now of course it's happening. By 2014 this part of the Borders will once again have modern, fast transport. A few tacky 70s and 80s houses were hardly going to be a barrier, were they?

So if you know anyone daft enough to be a trackbed trespasser have a quiet word in their ear and get them to sell up now, to a bigger mug, because it won't be long before they will get an unwelcome (and very enforceable!) CPO through their letterbox!

More on the Waverley line here.