On to Hawick and Carlisle

In December 2009, prior to the publication of the Contract Notice and Pre-qualification Document for the Borders Railway, Stewart Stevenson, the Minister for Transport, responded to media suggestions that the line could be extended south to England by commenting: "That's a perfectly reasonable ambition, Carlisle used to be a very important staging point for the railway…As traffic builds up on this new railway line, I think we will see a case that is much stronger than it currently is for looking at further expansion."

CBR is strongly committed to line extension – not least because Hawick is the Borders town which has suffered most from the loss of the old Waverley Route railway in 1969.

A possible phased approach to line extension after the railway has successfully been re-opened to Tweedbank would involve:

Phase 1

On to Melrose, Newtown St Boswells (for bus links to Kelso and Jedburgh) and a new station north of the river in Hawick (slashing public transport journey times to Edinburgh).

It may even be possible to make an early start on the 1½ miles from Tweedbank to the heart of Melrose – where the station building and platform are available for business.

Phase 2

Reconstruction of the railway from Longtown (near Carlisle) through Newcastleton to Riccarton and Kielder, for timber and military traffic, removing substantial numbers of lorries from public roads serving the Kielder, Wauchope, Newcastleton and Kershope forests.

Phase 3

Completion of the missing link from Hawick to Riccarton – connecting with the Waverley Railway Heritage Association’s recently-laid track near Whitrope Summit – providing a new Anglo-Scottish rail route with capacity for freight and passenger traffic, and a suitable diversionary route for the East Coast and West Coast Main Lines.

Passenger services from the Borders could run through to destinations beyond Carlisle, and interchange would be possible at Carlisle with any future high-speed rail link.