SUPPORTERS, opponents and the 'undecided' over the proposed restoration of the Bere Alston to Tavistock railway line were given their chance to discuss the plan with the developers this week. Kilbride Community Rail Group, in conjunction with Kilbride Properties, held two special exhibitions at the Bedford Hotel in Tavistock. Kilbride have put forward an application to West Devon Borough Council to restore 5.5 miles of Bere Alston to Tavistock branch line, including a new railway station, at an estimated cost of £18.5m in exchange for permission for 750 houses on land adjacent to Monksmead. If the controversial scheme went ahead it could be in place by as early as 2011 — Kilbride promises it will fund the project from the proceeds of residential development. The land they propose to build the houses on has been identified by West Devon as a site for 250 dwellings in its Local Plan, but opponents, like Tavistock Town Council, claim 750 houses would be too high a price to pay and the infrastructure could not cope. A rail service, say the developers, would provide an hourly service, subject to a demand study, and the station would be likely to include on site parking, cycling facilities, footpath access and a bus interchange. A technical spokesman for Kilbride said as an engineering project, the restoration of the line would be 'relatively straightforward' and the company was conducting a 'demand study' looking at ticket prices, train timetables and possible numbers of those likely to use such a service. An environmental impact assessment has also to be made. One visitor to the exhibition, Mary Ann Furze from Gulworthy, expressed concern at the amount of traffic that would be generated from 750 houses and the bottlenecks it would cause each day on Callington Road, Ford Street and around Drake's statue. She said: 'Not everyone who lives in the new estate will use the train to go to work and the train station is too far out of town. Once they step off the train there could be buses to take them into town, but people will always take the easy option and they will take their cars. 'I have no objections to the railway but I personally would use such a rail link once in a blue moon.' Gareth Dempster of Tavistock said the proposal was an interesting concept but he did not think it was sustainable. He said: 'The passenger level is not going to be enough to warrant an hourly service. Not everyone is going to go straight into Plymouth city centre, many will want to commute to work in outlying areas such as Derriford and the industrial estates. I would like to know about costs — if it cost too much, people will say that their car is more convenient. 'I'm not against the rail scheme by the Kilbride Group, it's a laudable idea but I just feel there won't be the demand to use it.' Neil Mitchell, chairman of the South West Chamber of Commerce who lives in Bere Ferrers, said it would be better if the route could be taken right into the town itself. He said: 'The ideal would be to carry on the track from Bere Alston, through the grounds of Tavistock College and onto Meadowlands. Then we really would have the opportunity to bring people and families from Plymouth to come and spend their money in Tavistock.' Mr Mitchell would like to see a rail/tram link between the town and the city and felt that if there was a trade-off of 'housing for a railway line' — such as in the proposal by the Kilbride Group — then perhaps that was the way forward. 'Such a scheme could only be viable if there is an existing railway line in place, such as it is here, and this could be the key to unlocking a brilliant future with such a link between Plymouth and Tavistock. It would be marvellous.' Peter Frost, the managing director of the Kilbride Community Rail Group, said: 'The exhibitions have proved very useful and comments from the community have been very productive.' Asked if the deveopment obtained permission which would come first, the houses or the railway, Mr Frost said the two were 'very much linked and would have to be delivered at the same time'. Mr Frost said the company was in consultation with West Devon and Devon County Council to find solutions to potential traffic problems. He said Kilbride was fully committed to the project. 'We are not naive. We are aware of the residential market and have to remain cautious but when it comes to sales of new housing we are looking in the medium term and we are confident that this is a realistic project,' he said.
