- Please do respond. Remember – this is your opportunity to formally have your say, and the purpose of the consultation is to gather feedback.
- It is important the EWR are made aware of your opinions. The more responses they get highlighting the issues, the more impact we will have.
- We recommend you respond multiple times: e-mail, letter, phone, the online forms.
- We won’t be providing a “template” response – these are easily dismissed in the review of consultations. However we have some messages that you can put into your own words.
- There are 2 separate subjects here:
- We need to emphasise that the 2019 consultation was flawed, therefore this 2021 consultation is based on flawed information.
- You should give your opinion as to which alignment suits you better – 1, 9 or neither – BFARe won’t share an opinion on that, because it will be different for each of us.
Letter Response
Send your letter to:
FREEPOST
East West Rail
E-mail response
Send your e-mail to: consultation@eastwestrail.co.uk
Phone
Call: 0330 1340067
Content
Start your e-mail/letter/call with:
“I am responding to your public consultation dated April-June 2021 and wish this letter/email to be considered as my formal response.”
Add the following points in your own words:
- 2019 Route Selection consultation was flawed and should be re-consulted:
- Inadequate communication and consultation
- Misleading information that changed during the process without notifying the public
- Did not include Freight, which is becoming increasingly evident EWR will need to support
- Did not include the destruction of homes now come to light
- Had undemocratic influence from Bedford Borough Council
- The 2021 consultation:
- Does not contain sufficient information to make a decision
- The timescales are inadequate to review, absorb and respond to all the information
- Does not allow open and transparent engagement with the public due to COVID restrictions.
- Alternative routes for Cambridge are being considered – why not for Bedford?
- Express any preference you have for route options and any issues you have identified.
Webform response
www.eastwestrail.co.uk/consultation
We encourage you to respond as you see fit to the web form. Here are a few things that you might want to include:
Question 1 – Approach to Cambridge:
Why is the route in and around Bedford not also being considered for change as well as Cambridge?
Question 2: – The Train Service
To support your zero carbon ambitions you could choose a shorted, flatter, straighter route to the South of Bedford.
Question 3: – Station Experience
An out of town station would provide a more environmentally friendly experience, causing less traffic, air quality issues and disruption than choking up Bedford town centre.
A Parkway station would be better than providing an interchange at Bedford Midland.
Section C: Bedford
Question 33: Bedford Area
Work in the area in and around St Johns and Bedford Midland stations should cause minimal disruption to roads, bridges and homes. A better solution would be not to disturb them at all by having a route south of Bedford with an in-out arrangement for EWR passenger trains. This would also mean Freight can bypass to the south.
Question 36: Emerging preferred Route
The route decision should be revisited in the light of the disruption to roads, bridges and homes. A route that avoids the town centre as much as possible should be chosen.
Question 37: Bromham Road Bridge
The route decision should be revisited in the light of the disruption to roads, bridges and homes. A route that avoids the town centre as much as possible should be chosen.
Question 39: Route Alignment for Clapham Green to Eversdens
Route E is unsuitable for EWR – the route needs reconsidering in the light of new information on freight and disruption to the environment, roads, bridges and homes.
