Blood and Custard
NORTH WEST businessman Neil McArthur has unveiled a proposal to revive six miles of disused railway track for both an extension to the national cycleway and a heritage railway carrying steam and diesel trains between Irlam in Salford and Timperley in Trafford. The project would add 14km (8.5 miles) to the National Cycle Network (NCN).
The plans for reopening the line together with a cycle and pedestrian route were unveiled at an event at Irlam station, at the celebration of the second anniversary of the Station House building restored in 2015 from dereliction to a thriving local café, heritage centre and community centre. The £2 million station restoration project was funded by local businessman Neil McArthur’s Hamilton Davies Trust (HDT), and is part of more than £7 million contributed by the charity to community facilities and activity in Irlam and Cadishead.
Neil McArthur’s railway revival plan is based on a report he has submitted to the two councils, Transport for Greater Manchester, Network Rail and Sustrans, the body responsible for the nation’s cycle network. It calls for political support from the statutory bodies to reconnect communities along the line, which lost its passe…
