Lancaster City Council has officially submitted a bid for Carnforth to become the home of Great British Railways, a new public body that will be in charge of the country’s railways.
Last week, Lancaster City Council submitted its expression of interest in the town becoming the location for the first headquarters of Great British Railways.
Both local MPs, David Morris and Cat Smith, have also voiced support for making Carnforth the home of the new organisation. An announcement on which areas have been shortlisted for the new headquarters is expected to be made in May.
A non-binding public vote will then take place before a final decision is made this summer.
The City Council’s bid focuses on Carnforth’s rich rail heritage and the benefits it would reap through the new HQ. The town’s connections with the railway, in particular the Victorian steam revolution, are rich and deep, with it still affectionately referred to as “Steamtown”.
Carnforth’s importance came from its position at the crossroads of the North-South mainline and the East-West lines linking the Furness peninsula with West Yorkshire and beyond. It became not only a hub for the railways, but also for the Post Office, and the site of an iron and steel works.
This indelible link with the railways was immortalised in David Lean’s 1956 film Brief Encounter, with one of the most romantic and poignant love scenes in cinema history shot at Carnforth.
Carnforth is already the home of West Coast Railways, the UK’s leading specialist train operator,whose excursions are regularly featured on the television programme, Greatest Railway Journeys in the World.
The bid also looks at the wider economic benefits the new HQ would bring to Carnforth and how it would be the perfect “levelling up” project.
Councillor Caroline Jackson, leader of Lancaster City Council, said: “I believe we have put together a compelling case as to why Carnforth should become the first headquarters for Great British Railways.
“Carnforth’s ‘crossroads’ status – spanning the borders of Lancashire and Cumbria, with connectivity to the north, south, east and west – provides the perfect opportunity for a levelling-up initiative that will directly and demonstrably benefit our whole community.
“The town’s strong existing link to the railways via its heritage would be further enhanced by national recognition. Furthermore, it is proposed that some relatively minor and inexpensive improvements to Carnforth Station’s connectivity would enable additional investment around rail infrastructure and skills, as well as wider industry opportunities.”
Local MP David Morris has also been working to secure this investment for Carnforth, and registered a Parliamentary Petition last week, advocating Carnforth as the best place for the new headquarters.
The campaign has the support of Lancaster Civic Vision, who believe that the quality jobs created by this investment would be a significant economic boost for the area, and that there is an extremely strong case for this investment being made at Carnforth.
They recently launched a petition to bolster local support for the campaign, which is still open.