Local walkers keep on bashing down the fence in order to access Network Rail's disused siding at New Bilton Rugby, where the re-modelling of the Rugby Station has caused the Rugby Cemex cement coal trains to be diverted from December, if permission can be obtained. Local ramblers claim to have been using the path regularly for 20 years, but EWS have advertised a public consultation into the LA-PPC permit to re-open the long disused line, now their access dispute with Network Rail is resolved.
In the meantime Cemex and WCC have attempted to temporarily close the Black Path that runs in parallel with the railway, along the edge of the quarry, with a drop of hundreds of feet, as apparently the quarry edge is subsiding, and walkers are in danger. The quarry path, fenced only with a small wire fence, has officially been cut off for six months, but no solution has been found. Cemex must either shore up and fence the path, or divert , possibly onto Network Rail's land. Seemingly the price tag of the rumoured £100,000 is too much. But several people have already
died in the other old cement plant quarry in Rugby, so the price tag would
surely appear reasonable.
Despite the "supposed" public consultation just starting, with EWS railways and RBC, into the LA-PPC application which has not been properly completed, it seems that Network Rail is already pushing on, clearing the line and cutting down trees in readiness for the 1600 tonne coal trains.
One wonders how safe the quarry path will be when the heavy trains start rumbling alongside there if it is already subsiding under the pressure of footfalls?
The Ordinance Survey map marks the railway as disused, so it seems the row will rumble on for a long time before the coal trains rumble along! What contingency plan do Cemex have if this plan to get 800 tonnes of coal each day into the works gets the thumbs down from Rugby Borough Council and the Rugby residents?
CEMENT FIRM PALTRY CONTRIBUTION £650,000
With the chaos currently being caused by the construction of the Western Relief Road, for which Rugby Cement is paying only a paltry £650,000 towards the construction of a roundabout at its plant, Rugby residents are wondering if Warwickshire County Council has sold out "Rugby town" too cheaply?
4 comments:
Warwickshire County Council objected to the original 1997 application to unload 2,000 tonnes coal a week on Rugby station and to truck it through the town in hundreds of lorries. They asked Rugby Cement to use the line instead. But RBC and Rugby Cement took no notice, and have been permitting an increase in tonnage and trucks ever since. Now it is 400 trucks a week, so they say and 1600 tonnes of coal every two days!
Has anybody got any idea why this railway has not been re-opened before, and why WCC and RBC have been so in favour of polluting Rugby residents, and making Rugby the lorry capital of the UK? Why have WCC and RBC not acted to stop this madness, and why have they encouraged and allowed the roads in Rugby used by the Cemex 800 daily juggernauts to become potholed and dangerous, while the houses shake and vibrate and pictures fall off the walls?
Is that a fair exchange for the random "charitable" few thousand pounds for Rugby in Bloom,or is it
CEMEX:
PROFIT BEFORE ENVIRONMENT?
PROFIT BEFORE HEALTH?
PROFIT BEFORE RUGBY RESIDENTS?
Surely this is a good thing?
If the siding is not used, then the coal will simply be delivered by truck adding to the problems Rugby is already facing with traffic.
When you move next to a 'disused' railway, you should not be so naive to think that means 'never to be used again!'
Better to get the trucks off the road and use rail!
Yes, you are right this is a good thing, but why have they had about:
500 X 50 = 25,000 extra heavy lorries through the town, for TEN years. That is 250,000 extra lorry journeys at 1.5 miles each. If my sums work out that is 375,000 extra miles through Rugby's streets, give or take a few.
Rugby Cement Logistics?
Rugby - Lorry Capital of the World!
Fair comment, but there are Laws and Regulations to be followed presumably, or are these industries outside of the Law? If it is such a good idea why have they not done it years before, thus saving thousands of lorry journeys through the town each year. How many unnecessary miles have they done in the town?
Most impressive massive plumes from the chimney stack and from what looks like cement mills tonight - Sunday 4th November.
Did you say there are about 3,000 tonnes of polluted gas every 24 hours?
What about the mills, are they extra to that?
Interested bystander
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