Please show your support for the re-instatement of the Guildford to Cranleigh Rail Link.

This petition is being promoted jointly by Cranleigh Chamber of Commerce and Guildford and Waverley Friends of the Earth. If you agree with it, please pass it onto your friends, families and contacts.

As many of you reading this will know, the train service to the village of Cranleigh was axed in the 1960s but the route has been preserved. The removal of this railway line has not been good for the people and businesses of Cranleigh and the surrounding area.

A study by the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC, see link to report below) has shown that there is a good business case for re-opening the line and there is also a strong environmental case for its re-opening. The proposal and the business case being put forward by ATOC is fundamentally different to the report by Surrey County Council dating from 1997 which both Waverley Council and Surrey County Council say showsthe line would not be financially viable.

We have a copy of the 1997 report and notonly is it hopelessly out of date in terms of its analysis of transport trends and the popularity of the switch from bus to train, but capitalfinancing structures have changed.There are other differences between the 1997 proposal and the new proposals, for instanceATOC are proposing a direct link to London using the London Road line with the ability to change at Guildford to a fast train,not a shuttle as envisaged in 1997 so additional trains for the shuttle will not need to be leased as envisaged in 1997 (adding to the cost).Also both in 1997 and in the ATOC proposal the only people who were included in the catchment were people living in Cranleigh and Bramley when it is clear that people in surroundingparishes like Ewhurst and Alfold will also want to use it.

Cranleigh Chamber of Commerce and Guildford and Waverley Friends of the Earthbelieve there will also be many economic, social and environmental benefits for residents and businesses in Cranleigh and the surrounding parishes including Bramley, Ewhurst, Alfold, Shamley Green, Loxwood and Rudgwick if the line to Guildford and London re-opens.

For anybody worried about the impact of the proposal on the Downslink as a walking and cycling route, members of Guildford and Waverley Friends of the Earth and the Waverley Cycle Forum have examined the proposal and believe the Downslink will not be lost by the scheme.

We started this petition in February 2010 just before an important vote by the Executive at Waverley Council. Ithadreceived a report from a sub-committee to 'do nothing' further. We believethis online petition and apaper petition helped to persuadeWaverley Executiveto be more positive. In the end it resolved to "encourage and assist" anybody who wants to carry out a further, more detailed,feasibility study.

WE URGE YOU TO SIGN THIS PETITION SO WE CAN SHOW WAVERLEY AND SURREY THERE IS COMMUNITY SUPPORT FOR THIS PROPOSAL AND SO WE CAN BUILD A STRONG CAMPAIGN GROUP

Thank You

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