Don Valley Line: 'Huge possibilities' for Sheffield if PM's pledge to revive train line stays on track

A railway group is celebrating after their 20-year-long campaign to see a Sheffield train line reopened has been put on track by the PM.

Rishi Sunak angered Northern voters on Wednesday after confirming HS2 would be scrapped - while pledging billions to revive existing and even permanently shut railway lines.

They include the Don Valley Line connecting the city centre to Deepcar, which shut in 1970 - and has been at the heart of a local campaign for two decades.

Now, the Don Valley Railway group - whose motto is 'Stocksbridge to City Centre in 11 minutes, that's the plan' - says the reopened line holds "huge possibilities" for Sheffield - if the PM can follow through on it.

Campaigner Chris Bell said: "We're really, really positive about it. We've never had such a commitment from the government as strong as this.

"We have an eye on if it will stay like that - there is an election on the way - but we're optimistic."

The Don Valley Line ran northwest out of Sheffield and was a section of the Woodhead Line between Sheffield and Manchester, via Pensitone. The terminus in the city was the now-closed Sheffield Victoria Station.

Stocksbridge is 10 miles from Sheffield city centre, but bus journeys currently can take up to an hour.

The restored line, running on one track, would reopen the Sheffield Victoria Station close to the Wicker in the city centre, and potentially open stations at Deepcar & Stocksbridge, Wharncliffe Side, Oughtibridge, Wadsley Bridge, Sheffield College, Neepsend and Kelham Island. A terminus at Nunnery Square has been suggested, which would allow it to link to the Supertram network.

With multiple housing projects in the north-west of the city, multiple schools close to the line, and by creating connections to nightlife areas like Neepsend and Kelham Island, Chris and the group hope the plan could create "huge opportunities" for the city.

Chris said: "The opportunities for any area with a station for a direct train into Sheffield are huge. A stop at Wickers Arches would greatly improve the amount of rail capacity coming into Sheffield."

The group was already working to advance the revival through the £500m Restore Your Railway fund in 2020 - but the announcement by Rishi Sunak appears to have 'supercharged' their proposals.

Chris said: "Were were waiting for information on if we would move up to the next stage and, surprise surprise, Rishi Sunak said on Wednesday 'it's going ahead'.

"It's a bit ironic that it's going ahead with the cancellation of HS2, when in all likelihood the Government has probably previously chosen HS2 over projects like this."

However, during the group's research, estimates for how much the project could cost have varied wildly. A study in 2010 put the price at £4.3m, but Chris believes another look by the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority in 2021 is reported to have put the figure between £50m - £120m.

In 2003, Stocksbridge resident David Goodison first proposed using the line as a heritage railway, and Sheffield City Council supported the idea of re-opening it for commuter services.

Don Valley Railway historically only proposed an 11-minute non-stop shuttle between Sheffield city centre and Stocksbridge.