THE many residents who, like us, will be affected by noise and vibration from the East-West Rail Project might like an update.

Rob Brighouse, managing director of Chiltern Railways, has recently made a last-ditch appeal to Oxford City Council to sign-off the project, despite the railway companies having failed, so far, to demonstrate that they will meet the planning condition (Condition 19) on noise and vibration.

Writing to Oxford City Council leader Bob Price, he maintains that, for the service to start on time, the west area planning committee must approve Network Rail’s proposal for Wolvercote at its meeting on May 12. He threatens that failure to do so would result in at least six months’ delay.

The delays, though, arise entirely from Network Rail’s failure to complete its noise and vibration mitigation reports on time (indeed, it has still not submitted its final track layout plans) and its failure to honour commitments made in the project’s Noise and Vibration Mitigation Policy.

The council has acted properly, appointing Arup, the global engineering consultancy, to review Network Rail’s vibration predictions.

Contrary to Mr Brighouse’s claim that Arup has endorsed the scheme, it concluded that "compliance with planning Condition 19 is only likely if lower freight train speeds are considered".

We fully support rail development as a means of reducing road traffic and we look forward to the many benefits that East-West Rail will bring to Oxford.

But unless Condition 19 is met, hundreds of Oxford families living close to the railway face a future blighted by unnecessary and unacceptable disturbance from noise and vibration.

We support the council’s call for a speed limit through residential areas.

A modest adjustment to the service on a few miles of track would ensure compliance with the conditions laid down to protect line-side residents.

PATRICIA FEENEY
On behalf of 70 other signatories
Bladon Close
Oxford