Renewed calls for direct Coventry-Leicester trains after gap of more than 20 years

Leaders from across the Midlands have renewed calls for the reinstatement of a direct rail service from Leicester to Coventry, unlocking £400 million worth of overall benefits to the region.

The direct service was initially stopped in 2004, after upgrades to the West Coast Main Line left the junction at Nuneaton unable to accommodate the additional trains.

Now, regional transport body Midlands Connect has said it is time to revisit the possibility of relaunching services.

Midlands Connect had previously submitted a Strategic Outline Business Case (SOBC) to the government in 2021, proposing reinstatement of the links between Coventry, Leicester and Nottingham.

It has now revised its initial proposal, with a plan to run 2tph between Coventry and Leicester as well as 2tph from Nottingham to Coventry.

Two plans are outlined. One includes stops at Nuneaton, with the other hinging on a dive-under being reinstated at Nuneaton, thereby ensuring that the Leicester-Coventry line does not disturb the WCML and allowing for quicker direct services between the three cities. Midlands Connect estimates that the project would cost between £100m-£120m.

The dive-under on the southern side of Nuneaton station was infrequently used, but Midlands Connect Chief Executive Maria Machancoses believes either a new chord or the dive-under being reinstated is the preferred option.

“Crucially we’re not starting from scratch with this option. It used to be there, so we’re trying to utilise the existing infrastructure and ensuring we don’t mess around with the current operations on the West Coast Main Line,” Machancoses told RAIL.

The track bed for the curve still exists, although a large sub-station has been built on the land and would likely need to be moved in order for work on the preferred option to start.

RAIL understands that as part of the SOBC, a proposal to reinstate the four-track railway on the southern gateway from South Wigston into Leicester has also been included.

This would help alleviate Midland Main Line traffic as well as cope with the extra services created by the Midlands Connect scheme.

It also includes building a new bay platform on the north side of Coventry station.

Mayor of Leicester Sir Peter Soulsby said it was “imperative” that the link was re-examined, describing it as a missing link for connectivity in the area.

Leader of Coventry Council George Duggins commented that councils have spoken for some time of the need for this route to become operational.

“It really is a missing link, and this is our opportunity to reforge it,” he said.

“We’ve spoken about it for a long time, but we must start turning these plans into reality in order to boost prosperity. It’s hard to see a sounder economic business case, so it really should be an easy decision.”

The route could also have huge benefits for rail freight, with Julian Worth of the Chartered Institute of Transport and Logistics telling RAIL that its location was key.

“It makes eminent sense for freight to use this link if it did come to fruition. Every single freight path from the docks of Southampton to the east of Yorkshire currently has to go through Birmingham. It makes no sense at all to be doing that. It would be much better to go from Coventry under the West Coast Main Line to head north.”

Midlands Connect is hopeful that it can move to a full business case in the next couple of years, with delivery by the early 2030s if it is approved.

The Department for Transport has given no indication of whether it would green light a full business case for the project.