Could the Ludgershall Branch reopen for passengers?

[brad465]

Moderator note: Split from https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/ludgershall-branch.170542/

Does Ludgershall support enough of a population to justify a proper service? Beyond the town the surrounding area is the sparsely populated Salisbury plain (hence the MoD presence of course), and any remote communities wanting railway access would be better off going to Pewsey on the Reading-Taunton line not far to the north, or just carrying on a bit further to Andover. That said it could become a heritage railway if someone was interested in setting it up as one.

 

[Kite159]

Does Ludgershall support enough of a population to justify a proper service? Beyond the town the surrounding area is the sparsely populated Salisbury plain (hence the MoD presence of course), and any remote communities wanting railway access would be better off going to Pewsey on the Reading-Taunton line not far to the north, or just carrying on a bit further to Andover. That said it would make a good heritage railway if someone was interested in setting it up as one.

Normally pops up every couple years or so about restoring passenger services to the line.

Ludgershall has got upto 4 buses an hour to Andover, 2 for Salisbury with the other 2 turning round in Tidworth. A lot of the population when wanting to use the train will tend to use either Andover or Grateley, depending where they live.

Whereas trains from the branch could run into Andover station as there is an unused platform face for the branch which will probably need a bit of work, the station at Ludgershall will need rebuilding. It's single track so it will limit the number of trains an hour, and where there is direct access towards Basingstoke/London, the track layout at Andover means to access the branch from the Basingstoke/London direction would require a double reversal, unless someone gives Network rail some money to install a crossover at the London end of the station so trains could run into P1.