Category Archives: ECML

Opening the Northumberland Coast Loop rail route compared to dualling the A1 and A19 roundabout rebuilds

A recent article from The Chronicle ‘Upgrades to two notorious A19 roundabouts would cost up to £775m’ has shed some light on the vast costs of upgrading the Seaton Burn junction of the A1 and A19, alongside the A19 and A189 interchange at Moor Farm, with Option A (fully grade separated junctions) coming at aContinue reading “Opening the Northumberland Coast Loop rail route compared to dualling the A1 and A19 roundabout rebuilds”

Northumberland Line: 350,000 Passengers Reached!

This blog post from Bus and Train User states that the Northumberland Line, opened in December 2024 has just surpassed 350,000 passengers since opening, a huge success for the new line, despite only three of the six stations being open. These strong figures suggest that 500,000 or more could be reached by the first anniversaryContinue reading “Northumberland Line: 350,000 Passengers Reached!”

Scotland Gate to the Scottish Border & Beyond? N.C.L. Update 13.6.25

A quick update on the Northumberland Coast Loop petitions to start with: Newcastle – Bedlington – Edinburgh Rail Service The petition for a rail service on the Newcastle – Bedlington – Edinburgh route has now reached 544 signatures, and continues to grow daily, thank you to all who’ve signed so far and if you haven’tContinue reading “Scotland Gate to the Scottish Border & Beyond? N.C.L. Update 13.6.25”

Route Of The Rambler! News on the Newcastle – Bedlington – Edinburgh Rail Service Petition 6.6.25

The petition for a Newcastle to Edinburgh rail service via Bedlington & Pegswood is close to reaching 500 signatures, with 474 having signed it to date. This petition will continue until such a time as a service is trialled over the proposed route, as outlined below in the two maps. If you would like toContinue reading “Route Of The Rambler! News on the Newcastle – Bedlington – Edinburgh Rail Service Petition 6.6.25”

Petition Progress – 761 Signatures Towards Better Northumberland Rail and Bus Services

Start a Newcastle – Edinburgh Rail Service via Blyth Bebside and Northumberland Park As of the 10th May 2025, the petition to ‘Start a Newcastle – Edinburgh Rail Service via Blyth Bebside and Northumberland Park‘ has gained 330 signatures. This route would better enable ‘within Northumberland’ trips by rail, such as Berwick and Alnmouth (forContinue reading “Petition Progress – 761 Signatures Towards Better Northumberland Rail and Bus Services”

The data case for Edinburgh bound trains from the Northumberland Coast Loop Stations

Inspired by the latest Railnatter episode (No.  258 ‘Data, maps and how to use them (with Will Deakin), it revealed some sources of data to augment the case for direct northbound rail travel from stations now opened and soon to open on the Northumberland Line. One of these sources was railwaydata.co.uk, which was used toContinue reading “The data case for Edinburgh bound trains from the Northumberland Coast Loop Stations”

A Virtual Railway Station for Alnwick? Inspired by Keswick.

Keswick: A ‘Virtual’ Railway Station for the Lake District town? A recent article from Rail Advent has shown an interesting way that the town of Keswick, in Cumbria, has gained a new ‘station’ on the national network, served not by trains, but by buses. In the article, it describes how Keswick has a ‘virtual railwayContinue reading “A Virtual Railway Station for Alnwick? Inspired by Keswick.”

Call to Kim McGuinness: Invest in the ECML and N.C.L. in Northumberland, and drop dualling the A1.

There has been a recent, and largely very welcome announcement in recent days about a £208m transport investment, part of a larger overall ‘£8.3bn transport vision’ which includes welcome schemes such as reopening of the Leamside Line, integrated ticketing, and wider public transport and active travel improvements. That being said, dualling the A1 has onceContinue reading “Call to Kim McGuinness: Invest in the ECML and N.C.L. in Northumberland, and drop dualling the A1.”

Response to David Smith MP, North Northumberland on A1 Junction Improvements, BUT is improving and upgrading ECML the real solution?

As a Northumberland resident and a frequent user personally of the A1, it was very welcome to see David Smith, MP for North Northumberland meeting with officials from National Highways to show them several problematic junctions along this stretch of road between Morpeth and Berwick. For those unfamiliar with it, it is a mixed routeContinue reading “Response to David Smith MP, North Northumberland on A1 Junction Improvements, BUT is improving and upgrading ECML the real solution?”