THE GOVERNMENT’S pledge to bring back historic rail lines has been deemed a “sick joke”.

It comes after Transport Secretary Grant Shapps launched a new investment pot of £500 million to restore rail lines which were closed during the controversial Beeching cuts in the 1960s.

The scheme aims to improve connectivity for communities across the country.

A fresh round of the New Stations Fund was also announced, with communities urged to pitch their restoration proposals directly to the Government.

But, the news has hit criticism in East Hampshire, with Councillor Andy Tree, leader of Whitehill Town Council, commenting: “My personal view is that this is a sick joke when we have been told that we will not be getting a railway station, despite the overall Whitehill & Bordon regeneration project!

“In fact, we don’t even have a rail link bus let alone a train station. Perhaps some of this money could be used on our community to create proper public transport connections?”

Bordon previously had a railway line which connected the town’s Army camp, Bordon and Kingsley with the national rail network, but this was closed in 1966. There was also a Longmoor Military Railway line, which closed three years later in 1969.

John Eddleston, secretary of the Alton Line Users Association (ALUA), said: “ALUA welcomes the fund to reopen certain rail lines closed in the Beeching era, but the sum of £500m is pitifully small in transport terms and only really sufficient to fund a few surveys into rail reopening proposals!

“Reopening the Fawley branch would be worthwhile in relieving road traffic congestion in the Southampton city area. The track is still in situ as a backup to serve the Esso refinery.

“Otherwise a short line that could be reinstated is that to the former Southampton Terminus station (a freight line passes by). This would relieve rail congestion at Southampton Central station. Sadly, other cases such as Alton to Winchester are not viable as the land has been sold off and mostly redeveloped.”

But, Mr Shapps commented: “Many communities still live with the scars that came from the closure of their local railway more than five decades ago.”

He continued: “Investing in transport links is essential to levelling up access to opportunities across the country, ensuring our regions are better connected, local economies flourish and more than half a century of isolation is undone.”