Marston Vale Community Rail Partnership celebrated its 15th birthday on 4th April – how time flies! It doesn’t seem 15 years since our Official Launch at the Forest Centre back in 2007.
We are proud to be one of the longest established of the growing number of over 70 CRPs across the country.
The MVCRP team were busy on the day distribution special birthday cakes to passengers’ courtesy of Gunns Bakery.
Much has been achieved since 2007 with a number of major station enhancements delivered including:
- Covered cycle parking at Bedford St Johns & Millbrook
- New waiting shelters at Stewartby & Millbrook
- Customer Information Screen installed on Platform 1A at Bedford Midland & all stations along the Line
- Artwork designed by the local community installed at Bedford St Johns, Stewartby, Lidlington, Woburn Sands & Fenny Stratford
- Unique 6-foot bench & special commemorative poem at Millbrook in memory of Captain Sir Tom Moore
- Station Enhancement Scheme at Woburn Sands incorporating new fencing, weather proofing of the shelters, installation of water butts, and a Bee Friendly Garden
The range of services on the Line has been extended with the launch of a Bank Holiday Service in 2019 (the first such service since 1968) and the introduction of later evening services in 2017 as part of the London Northwestern Railway franchise.
MVCRP has also arranged late evening ‘Fireworks Flyer’ services and all day Sunday services for the bi-annual Bedford River Festival. An inaugural through services from Milton Keynes Central to Bedford was organised for the 2016 River Festival.
Regular special themed trains have taken place including History Through Word & Song, Easter Eggspress, Ghost Train and the ever-popular Santa Special which has become a Christmas tradition for many local families.
Passenger numbers have gradually increased reaching a ten-year high before the intervention of the pandemic.
MVCRP has worked with the community to form Station Friends Groups at the majority of stations along the Line. There are currently over 70 volunteers involved and growing!
Their work includes:
- Installation and maintenance of gardens & floral displays
- History displays
- Station inspections
- Assistance with MVCRP themed trains
And last but no means least, MVCRP’s flagship project, the re-opening of the former Station House at Ridgmont as a Heritage Centre in 2013 after over 40 years of disuse and an extensive six-year restoration.
Ridgmont Station Heritage Centre has since become the ‘jewel in the crown’ of the Line and a multi-award-winning visitor attraction, most recently admittance into the Trip Advisor Hall of Fame in 2019. The day-to-day running of the Heritage Centre is overseen by the Friends of Ridgmont Station.
Huge thanks to our fantastic team of Station Friends & other volunteers who have made MVCRP the success it has become.
Many thanks to all our funders in particular London Northwestern Railway, East Midlands Railway, Avanti West Coast, Bedford Borough Council, Central Bedfordshire Council and Milton Keynes Council. Thanks also to Bedfordshire Rural Communities Charity for employing our officer and being our lead partner.
Here’s to the next 15 years!