Extending the Borders Railway through Melrose

[@angelsone-five7912]

A scenario being played out all over the place. Mad rush to get rid of the rails and put down roads then the penny drops and "Oh gawd, where are we going to put the railway?"

[@michaeljohn7262]

Only a matter of time before extending to Hawick and Carlisle.

[@lewisner]

Move the road and get the tracks relaid.

[@milesthemelonator]

Will never happen unfortunately

[@frankdusty]

Totally agree not much traffic on it anyway

[@michaelgoulding6609]

any former railway trackbed should be protected from any develoment, just incase it ever needs to reopen again, near me, a former railway has houses been built on part of it, houses or anything could be either side of it, so has not to disrupt the route..but instead they have some houses right on the trackbed itself, but i,m sure that if it ever needed to reopen again, the rail company involved would just put a compulsory purchase order on them & demolish them that are in the way, but also like in this video, it could all be avoided by more carefull planning, & a protection on any trackbed

[@sandletters39]

Will there be another Falahill-type deviation to get the railway from north side to the south side of the road?

[@davarosmith1334]

It would be great obviously. It would be ideal if it took freight as well. That would take a load of slow lorries off the A7. It would have to go all the way to Carlisle , for it to do that though. Like every thing else , you know what makes sense will not happen!

[@WaverleyWanderer]

Moving freight from road to rail is obviously a much wider issue. Currently the only potential freight traffic would be timber if the line were extended all the way to Carlisle. Through traffic is dependent on existing cross Border lines getting close to capacity to warrant expansion of the network for greater volumes or flexibility. If there were a greater modal shift in the future, this might change. The question is how far in advance of such as change is it prudent to spend money on building a railway to accommodate it. A single-track railway with sensibly placed dynamic passing loops night be more than enough to meet local needs for the near future but not be if there is significant move from road to rail. Ditto for electrification. The transport feasibility study is due to be published by the Scottish Government later in the year

[@davarosmith1334]

Waverley Wanderer cheers man!

[@Inkyminkyzizwoz]

I believe the line has been built with future electrification in mind. Also, I think I did hear a suggestion that a section at the Carlisle end may be considered for reopening for timber traffic anyway, which would certainly strengthen the case for doing the whole route!

[@teresaletham9251]

The Borders really needs the line restored to Carlisle, it would boost the economy and help create jobs. Time to pressure the politicians again.

[@WaverleyWanderer]

We could have a long wait for them to find the £1-1.5 Billion

[@johnhealy8513]

There is an easy solution. Rip up the bypass and lay rails instead.

[@WaverleyWanderer]

A single track road with passing places will be fine might even make this dangerous road with a poor safety record better.

[@alanmorr3635]

Perhaps one day the railway might be extended, lovely video, I am a cyclist and would love to cycle down that path.

[@gar3th27]

If they reinstate the railway along to Melrose, the path won't be there to cycle down.

[@alanmorr3635]

+Gareth Cuthbert That happened when the Aidrie - Bathgate railway was extended, we lost the cycle path but there is now a new cycle path parallel to the new railway.

[@gar3th27]

There isn't any room past Melrose. If they widen the stretches where Road and rail get very close, there cannot physically be a cycle path. The bridge that crosses Dingleton Road would have to be widened to the point of encroaching on shop and pub premises below too.

[@paulwilson3083]

@@gar3th27 Bloody Sustrans the cycle path organisation have caused a lot of problems for preserved railways when they have wanted to extend, they have to much power.

[@michaelgoulding6609]

@@paulwilson3083 most cycleists wont use cyclepaths anyway, they insist on causing a nuisence by cycleing in the middle of busy roads, so any cyclepath on any former trackbed should not even come into the argument if the railways want to reopen

[@neilbain8736]

It's going to be tight.

[@WaverleyWanderer]

The road would have to be moved beyond the old station and some sort of bridge built to take the road over the railway at some point. I am afraid to say one of the more expensive locations to fix.

[@andysmart2379]

It will never happen. Too many factors against it.

[@WaverleyWanderer]

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