Improved rail link will help boost Burnley

Today, I had the opportunity with others to walk through the newly refurbished and re-opened Holme Tunnel in Cliviger.
Holme Tunnel at Cliviger, on Burnley to Hebden Bridge line, ahead of scheduleHolme Tunnel at Cliviger, on Burnley to Hebden Bridge line, ahead of schedule
Holme Tunnel at Cliviger, on Burnley to Hebden Bridge line, ahead of schedule

The companies Amco and Network Rail are to be congratulated for completing, on schedule and within budget, this tremendous feat of engineering and, very importantly, with not one accident.

As is known to many, the Holme Tunnel had suffered movement due to geological movements caused by water, mining and other natural age-related reasons.

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The rail link between Burnley, Yorkshire and Manchester is of vital importance to the economy of this region, and Burnley in particular and the repairs that have been carried out will last for another hundred years or more.

Not only has the tunnel been repaired, but while it has been closed, the Todmorden Link Curve, enabling access to Manchester by rail, has been reconnected, the whole of this length of rail track between Burnley and Todmorden has been refurbished and trains are now running again.

We can look forward now to the time, hopefully soon, when we can catch a train from Burnley directly into Manchester. Good communications, road, rail and air are of vital importance in our modern day society and now we will have the benefit of easier access to these.

The Todmorden Curve rail link will also be attractive to those who wish to bring their businesses to Burnley, as it brings closer the commercial links that commercial cities have and are necessary to create, develope and provide new and lasting job prospects.

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As a councillor for Burnley, my main priorities have always been the development of the borough, and I have been fortunate enough to be involved in many of the major developments. Burnley is beginning to buzz. The economic future is brighter, jobs are being created in the construction industry, new homes are being snapped up almost as fast as they can be built; these are the signs that the town is waking up to a new era. I look forward to the future of this wonderful town of ours. Let the past be confined to history; treading water is in reality a backward step. Let the horizon be our future.

Coun. David Heginbotham

Cliviger and Worsthorne with Hurstwood