CAMPAIGNERS in Beattock have hit back at Transport Scotland after a seven-year campaign to reopen Beattock station was derailed earlier this year.
Despite huge efforts from locals and strong business cases built by South West of Scotland Transport Partnership (SWestrans), Transport Scotland rejected pleas for investment in the village’s station.
The government transport body also made it clear that further efforts would not change their opinion because reopening the stations would not stack up economically.
In a letter written to the Scottish Transport Minister, the chair of Beattock Station Action Group, Ron McLean has now rebutted the finding of the transport body’s Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG) report. He stated: “We would challenge the assertion that i) there is not sufficiently strong evidence for non-monetised benefits and ii) it does not demonstrate a socio-economic case for the station to be reopened.
“We have studied the report closely and find evidence to the contrary. It contains comprehensive material within it which clearly demonstrates that Peter Brett Associates, who carried out the feasibility study, concluded that the reopening of Beattock Station would meet the three transport planning objectives in their entirety.
“We dispute using Lockerbie as the comparison town with Moffat on the grounds that Moffat is a known tourist destination, whereas Lockerbie is for the most part, not a destination town.
“For information, the annual visitor population of Moffat alone has been recorded as between 850,000 – 950,000 as a mixture of day trippers and longer staying visitors.
“We know that this STAG Report cost a total of £75,000, £14,000 of which was funded by local businesses and residents. We feel that this financial commitment by them should not be ignored or sidelined.
“We are keen to continue a dialogue with both Transport Scotland and the Transport Minister, therefore we request a face to face meeting, either in Beattock, or at Holyrood.”
