The BFARe campaign is petitioning for Full Life Environmental Impact to be prioritised.
Delicate country ecosystems and wildlife habitats must be avoided.
The North Bedfordshire unspoilt rolling countryside is habitat to a diverse ecology and a range of wildlife. Causing massive irreparable damage to that should be a last resort. There are alternatives that use existing A421 travel corridor.
The route E currently selected is longer, has more tight curves and more steep gradients meaning it will require more energy for trains and is less environmentally friendly. This is regardless of whether the trains are electric or diesel.
As it happens the current plans are for diesel trains, which carry a higher carbon footprint. There are no current plans to electrify the line – which means for the foreseeable future it must use diesel traction.
A route through Bedford Midland station has been pushed for by Bedford Borough Council for a tiny economic gain. Yet they have not performed any comparative traffic study for any of the options. The traffic to and from the town is already congested and polluting. Nor have they performed any Air Quality, Noise Pollution or energy use analysis.
Full Life Environmental Impact must be prioritised.