Ambitious Great Central Railway viaduct plan emerges to reunify line for good

Dramatic plans for a new viaduct to reunite the Great Central Railway (CGR) have been unveiled. Organisers are now looking for financial backing to make their “vital” project a reality.

The viaduct plan aims to reunify the line between Leicester and Nottingham for good and is the next phase of the GCR’s ambitious proposal to re-link the route with the A60 and the Midland Mainline currently standing in their way. If approved, it would see the creation of an 18-mile heritage line that stretches from the north of Leicester to the south of Nottingham.

Artist’s impressions of the new viaduct have been revealed by GCR bosses as they prepare to submit their plans within a “matter of weeks”. The heritage line team says the scheme will require 200 metres of viaduct alongside 100 metres of embankment to make it a reality.

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The plan is different from what GCR officials had previously put forward for the long-running reunification project. Malcolm Holmes, the line’s general manager, said they had initially expected to build around a 300-metre long embankment, but spacing issues made that “quite complex”.

Mr Holmes hailed the new plan as “slightly cheaper” and one which will be “simpler to construct”. He said that he wanted as many people as possible to know about the plans.

If approved, the new line would also include two steel bridge spans, one of which will carry the restored railway across a culvert, while the other will take it over Loughborough’s Railway Terrace Road. Full designs will emerge upon submission.

The blueprints and designs for the viaduct project alone will set the GCR back £500,000. Mr Holmes said these documents were “vital” in ensuring the line was restored in full, with £2 million already fundraised to ensure it happens one day. However, he has called on anyone else who can help fundraise for the project to get in touch.

He said: “While we have £2m already raised for the project, we want to protect as much of that fund as possible for actual building work. Our new appeal for half a million pounds is to fund the vital next steps and get this epic project ‘shovel ready.’ The more money we raise, the sooner we can build again and the more we can achieve.”

More information, including how to donate, can be found on the Great Central Railway website.