In a meeting being held today, Tuesday, 25th July, political and business leaders will discuss improvements to the rail corridor between Nottingham and Lincoln.
Lilian Greenwood, Labour MP for Nottingham South, met business representatives from East Midlands Chamber and Network Rail to discuss a report titled All Change: The Castle Line, which details proposals to make train travel more attractive, reduce dependence on cars, and benefit the local economies.
The plans were developed with support from Nottinghamshire County Council, Nottingham City Council, Lincolnshire County Council, and Local Enterprise Partnerships. Network Rail and local train operator East Midlands Railway (EMR) were also key stakeholders in the process.
In a Strategic Outline Business Case that Midlands Connect submitted to The Department for Transport, it called for an £18m investment to improve journey times with a recommendation that work should start in April 2026, and be complete by Summer 2028.
At the moment, only 10 per cent of journeys between Nottingham and Lincoln are by rail, but if these plans get the go-ahead, trains, train speeds throughout the route will increase from 50mph to 75mph.
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.“
Lilian Greenwood, Labour MP for Nottingham South, said: “We must ensure our transport network is fit for the future, attracting more people to use our railways and bringing investment to boost our economies.
“I support these plans by Midlands Connect, as a first step in bringing more improvements to this route.“
I wonder what the strategic solution is to the flat crossing at Newark ?