Dr Beeching Got it Wrong

6 Locks, 4½ Miles. Now moored by Bridge 22 Middlewich Branch, Shropshire Union Canal

It has been a glorious day for cruising with a cool breeze just to spoil it all. Now it's the end of the tourist season things are starting to get very quiet on the cut with just a handful of boats on the move. Where we are moored is above what I presume you would call the Weaver Valley with the river Weaver wending its way towards Northwich and a large lake or Flash as they call them around here which has been created by subsidence from the salt mining. Very picturesque.

Now last night on BBC4 there were 3 programme's about British Railways and the aftermath of Dr Beeching's 1963 report on reshaping British Railways. It would appear that he wielded his axe too far and about 1/3rd of the lines that got the chop should have been retained and then perhaps there wouldn't be the congestion on today's roads. Talking about roads, this is where MP Mr Marples comes along and is only too happy for the railways to be closed as it gives him the opportunity to build roads and motorways and amass his fortune. Nice one if you can get it. Now politicians have come to their senses and are starting to talk about rebuilding the railways.

Another of last nights programme's was about walking the tracks along old disused railways lines and last night the young lady presenter was walking the Peak District. This showed that most of the infrastructure of the line was still in place,bridges and tunnels etc: (she had to get special permission to go through he tunnels as they are all sealed up and locked) and it looked as if it would only take replacement of track for the line to be re-opened. An interesting thought when David Cameron of the Conservative party is talking about a high speed line from Heathrow, London St Pancras, Manchester and Leeds instead of building runway 3 which would prove to be quicker and more environmentally friendly. With the problems the Aviation industry are having with fuel prices and airport congestion is sounds like a good scheme to me. Bring back the railways!

The final programme was of Victoria Woods the comedienne travelling from Crewe to the very top of Scotland and back via the East coast lines. This was both enlightening and entertaining as she had to change trains many times and from main line operation to single track lines . The scenery was stunning at times and something you can never enjoy driving along a motorway at 70 MPH. There is something to be said for train travel. One observation that came out which I thought very apt was that train travellers moaned about late trains or non arrivals back in the 60's and poured out onto Britain's roads when cars became more affordable. Now they moan and grizzle about the traffic congestion and delays, can't win can they! At least on the train you can read the paper or work on your laptop, you can't do that driving your car. Its all a matter of priorities.

It has been a well known fact for decades that freight on railways is the money maker and passenger services are just a public amenity running at a loss so what's so different with buses that Dr Beeching was so much in favour of running instead of trains. They are subsidised by tax payers, so should they be axed? I think not but as the old saying goes it doesn't pay to have all your eggs in one basket, so as far as public transport is concerned there is a place and need for road, rail and air to spread the load evenly. Politicians need to start thinking outside the square and not about personal gain, after all they are in parliament to represent the people, aren't they?

1477 locks, 3105 miles, 51 Tunnels, 42 swing bridges and 39 lift bridges since Nov 2006