CAMPAIGNERS are urging transport bosses either side of the Lancashire-Yorkshire border to prioritise a long-held ambition to reunite Colne and Skipton by rail.

Pendle MP Andrew Stephenson and his Skipton counterpart Julian Smith staged a symbolic handshake and ribbon-cutting ceremony at Thornton-in-Craven, on the modern-day boundary between the counties, at the invitation of SELRAP (Skipton East Lancashire Rail Action Partnership).

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Supporters of SELRAP have kept up the pressure to restore the line between the two towns, which was closed in 1970, and recently welcomed another leading figure, Dr Jon Lamonte, chief executive of Transport for Greater Manchester.

Mr Stephenson said the organisation had run a ‘fantastic campaign’ and had financed a number of preliminary studies into reinstating the track.

But he added: “Both county councils - Lancashire and North Yorkshire - need to prioritise the line so we can work towards securing funding from government.

“I’ve been getting some encouraging noises from Lancashire but it is still an ambition rather than a priority.”

The rail scheme is mentioned in the East Lancashire Transport Masterplan but is not identified as a key aim.

In recent months the focus has centred on proposals for the A56 Colne to Foulridge bypass, off the M65.

Coun Tony Greaves, who is Pendle Council’s deputy leader and a regular contributor to railway debates in the House of Lords, said: “If it is going to be taken seriously then the two public transport authorities need to get on board.

“The other body that needs to take it into account is Rail North. The problem is that Rail North is dominated by the big cities, who are not remotely interested in communications for more ‘remote’ areas.”

He also believed that neither Lancashire nor North Yorkshire viewed the line’s restoration as important because it was at the fringe of each of their authority areas.

Talks have also been held this week by SELRAP with county coun Azhar Ali, who represents Nelson South and is Labour’s prospective parliamentary candidate for Pendle, and Coun John Fillis, the county council’s transport cabinet member.