Reversing the cuts made to Britain’s rail network made by Dr Beeching in the 1960s will be costly and complex, councils have warned.
The government will decide next month whether to grant the Ashington, Blyth and Tyne line £99.5m towards the £125m first phase costs, in what should be the easier line to reopen, as allthe track is still in situ.
However, Northumberland council’s 160-page outline proposal for the reopening already includes 11 appendices, one of which runs to 7,164 pages.
The government has allowed just five years for the proposals to be put forward and lines reopened.
