A report will be submitted today (25th of May) which calls for improvements to be made for the Nottingham and Lincoln rail corridor.
A Strategic Outline Business Case by Midlands Connect will be submitted to The Department for Transport outlining the need for an £18m investment in order to see journey times improved.
‘All change: The Castle Line' is the title of the report will detail plans which will make travelling by train more appealing to the public, supporting a reduction in car dependency whilst benefiting local economies.
Currently, only 10% of travel made between Nottingham and Lincoln is made by train. Should the report receive the green light, train speeds will see an increase from 50mph up to 75mph across the entire route, which will no doubt encourage more passengers to consider rail travel. Midlands Connect has recommended in the report that work gets underway during April 2026, in order to be completed during the Summer of 2028.
CEO of Midlands Connect, Maria Machancoses, said: “This is an important connection between two major urban areas, and our plans for investment represent the first step in encouraging more passengers to use the trains.”
“We recognise the need to make train travel more attractive and help people transition to sustainable transport.”
“Our purpose is to create a fairer, greener and stronger Midlands. Faster connections between our towns and cities will bring a boost to the area for all the residents, businesses and visitors.“
Karl McCartney, MP for Lincoln, said: “I'm pleased to see these plans being submitted, improving train travel times will inevitably benefit both Lincoln and the entire Greater Lincoln area. I look forward to seeing this scheme progress.“
The plans laid out in the report have been created in collaboration with:
- Nottinghamshire County Council
- Nottingham City Council
- Lincolnshire County Council
- Local Enterprise Partnerships
Key stakeholders in the proposed project are Network Rail and East Midlands Railway.
The “Castle Line” does seem like a good name.
Whilst they are at it, perhaps the Nottingham to Skegness service could be speeded up as the 2 hours seems like an eternity, especially after the Boston to Skegness track was replaced a few years ago, and upgraded to accept type 37 diesel locos.