On 26th November UWR received a formal response to the application made earlier this year to the Second Round of the Department for Transport’s Ideas Fund for Restoring Your Railway. Whilst UWR has not yet been awarded funding, the DfT states that the scheme may be suitable for Ideas Funding, but that the case needs to be further strengthened. Detailed feedback indicates where this further strengthening is required and UWR is invited to draw on further advice from the DfT. This is a good outcome for UWR, especially given the tight deadlines of the original application. Undoubtedly, this has been a successful first validation of the viability of the scheme to reinstate the railway from Garsdale to Hawes. The UWR team is already planning the efforts and resources necessary to prepare the further details requested by the DfT.
November 2020.
