Press Release: Dawlish petition gains hundreds of signatures

 A petition launched by Modern Railways Deputy Editor and rail campaigner Andy Bowes-Roden to get the Government to reinstate Phase 5 cliff works of the South West Rail Resilience Programme between Dawlish and Teignmouth has secured almost 350 signatures in just four days.

The Government announced it was pausing strengthening the cliffs near Teignmouth, Devon, in July with funding to be spent elsewhere, but Mr Bowes-Roden – who led the successful campaign to save the ‘Night Riviera’ sleeper train from closure in 2005 - says the works must be completed.

“These cliffs were identified as by far the biggest geotechnical risk to the railway by Network Rail in 2014 after 20,000 tonnes of rock fell onto the railway, closing it for two months - and they remain so. Until these vital works are completed, those cliffs are a sandstone Sword of Damocles hanging over our beautiful but fragile railway. Should they fall again, a huge area of the country will lose its only rail link for weeks – and potentially months.

“We need as many people as possible to sign the petition, write to their MP and to travel on the railway to make an inarguable case to the Government that the full resilience programme must be completed.

“We know from the success of Save Our Sleeper that if the South West speaks with one voice we can all make a positive difference – and secure the future of this lifeline transport link to Plymouth, Torbay, and Cornwall against the effects of a major cliff fall.”

Newton Abbott MP Martin Wrigley also says the work must be completed, saying: “It was extremely disappointing and frustrating to all involved that the Government haven’t committed the funding to enable completion of the South West Rail Resilience programme. Whilst the work completed so far has provided much needed improvements to the sea wall to protect this vital line, the final phase would have ensured the protection of the track between Holcombe and Teignmouth. It was this section that was closed for eight weeks when a huge landslip occurred from the cliffs above, which resulted in over 50 towns and villages being cut off from the rest of the country, and a financial loss to the South West economy of £1.2 billion. It was fortunate that a train wasn’t passing at the time, as that could have been catastrophic.

“The decision not to fund this final stage of the project is short sighted, not only for the financial implications for the region and business investment confidence, but also in terms of public safety. Although the Government has committed to continued monitoring of the cliffs and drainage in the area, it is not enough. I’m hoping we don’t see a worst case scenario on this line, and I, along with my fellow South Devon MPs and other campaigners will continue to pressure the Government on this issue.”

In 2014, a major rockfall in the area closed the railway linking Plymouth, Torbay and Cornwall with the rest of the National Rail network for two months, with analysis by Mr Bowes-Roden and Modern Railways Editor Richard Clinnick at the time suggesting the economic damage to the region could have been up to £20 million per day: adjusted for inflation, that would be £27 million per day in 2025.

The petition is at www.change.org/SaveOurRailway.

 

Notes to Editors

·    On 8 July, the Government announced it was pausing Phase 5 of the South West Rail Resilience Programme, saying: “We have already invested significantly in securing the cliffs and making the coastline more resilient in the South West and need to focus our investment on other projects around the country. We will keep this scheme under review as the preliminary works complete and for funding at future fiscal events.”

·        A 2014 study by Network Rail (https://www.networkrail.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/West-of-Exeter-Route-Resilience-Study.pdf) identified the cliffs between Dawlish and Teignmouth as the biggest geotechnical risk to the railway in the region.