A new £130 million high-speed rail link from Oxford to London has been halted by bats.Commuters had been looking forward to the faster service within three years, following a public inquiry into the scheme.
Proposals for the development, which will go through Bicester, were put forward by Chiltern Railways and the project is expected to cost £130 million.
But the planning inspector has withheld approval due to concerns the faster trains could destroy a colony of rare bats roosting in Wolvercote Tunnel in Oxford.
And Chiltern Railways and environment body Natural England also need to agree on a scheme to stop possible pollution of nearby ponds inhabited by endangered great-crested newts.
The two organisations have been given four weeks to find a solution.
The Department for Transport said if measures to protect the species were agreed, Transport Secretary Justine Greening would be ‘minded to approve the scheme’.
Jonathan Gittos of the Engage Oxford group, which raised fears about noise and vibrations from the service, said: ‘It’s a completely mad world when the inspector seems to pay more attention to the needs of bats and newts than people.’
Source: Daily Mail
And Chiltern Railways and environment body Natural England also need to agree on a scheme to stop possible pollution of nearby ponds inhabited by endangered great-crested newts.
The two organisations have been given four weeks to find a solution.
The Department for Transport said if measures to protect the species were agreed, Transport Secretary Justine Greening would be ‘minded to approve the scheme’.
Jonathan Gittos of the Engage Oxford group, which raised fears about noise and vibrations from the service, said: ‘It’s a completely mad world when the inspector seems to pay more attention to the needs of bats and newts than people.’
Source: Daily Mail