OVER 100 PEOPLE ‘DROP-IN’ TO AIRDRIE-BATHGATE COMMUNITY SESSIONS
Monday October 05, 2009
More than 100 local residents turned out to speak to members of the Airdrie-Bathgate Rail Link project team as they hosted drop-in sessions in some of the communities that will benefit from the new £300m railway.
The Network Rail team visited Caldercruix, Blackridge, Airdrie, Drumgelloch, Bathgate and Armadale throughout September to hear what residents had to say about the project and to provide an update on works taking place in their area.
Each day brings communities in West Lothian and North Lanarkshire closer to a new direct rail link to both Edinburgh and Glasgow as the construction of Scotland’s biggest rail project progresses.
Network Rail senior project manager, Hugh Wark, said:
“It is always good to get out into the communities to meet the people who live in and around the areas that the new link will service. We are really pleased with the turnout and the positive feedback we got. People genuinely seem excited about how they will be able to use the new railway. We even had a few people that came all the way from St Andrews to see us!
“We know that some of our work has caused local disruption in communities. Network Rail takes safety and the concerns of residents very seriously and we would like to thank them for their patience during the essential works that are underway.”
The new Airdrie-Bathgate Rail Link is scheduled to open in December 2010 and once complete, will allow passengers to travel from Helensburgh and Milngavie in the West to Edinburgh Waverley, creating new economic, social and career opportunities for those living along the route.
Some of the residents of Drumgelloch who dropped in to speak to senior project manager, Hugh Wark (left.)