Motion #02

Electrify the East-West Railway Line from the Beginning

Proposers

Emma Garnett*, Josh Morris-Blake, Lucy Bywater, Christopher Haggart, James Thorniley, Peter Brommer, Neil O’Doherty, Rob Callender, Tiago Pinto, Alan Francis, Hannah Charlotte Copley, Mike McTimoney, Chloe Mosonyi, Andrew Browne, Sarah Nicmanis, Patrick McAllister, James Long, Andrew Browne, Owain Sutton, Adam Turner, Robert Crowston,

Synopsis

East West Rail will fill an important gap in the rail network and help reduce car and lorry use in the region. It will largely replace the Varsity rail line, much of which closed in the 1960s. However, the railway line should be electrified as soon as possible to replace the diesel trains.

Motion

Insert into Record of Policy Statements:

“The Green Party supports the building of East West Rail in full from Cambridge to Milton Keynes to Oxford, and calls for the project to be electrified as quickly as possible. The railway should be accessible for everyone and be well connected to active transport routes. The route should minimise disruption to local communities as far as possible and bring benefits locally as well as regionally and nationally. The route should minimise negative impacts on housing, public green spaces, nature and wildlife and carry out appropriate mitigation works with sensitivity and generous compensation.”