The Scottish Government has pledged to seriously consider plans to reopen a defunct Fife railway line.
The commitment by Transport Minister Keith Brown is the clearest signal yet that the campaign to reinstate the Levenmouth rail link is back on track.
With a population of more than 24,000, Levenmouth is the largest urban conurbation in Scotland without a rail service.
More than 2,000 people have signed a petition calling for the reintroduction of passenger and freight services, in the hope they will help revive the area’s economic fortunes.
While Mr Brown has not guaranteed any Scottish Government funding for the project, his comments have prompted Fife Council to look at updating the 2008 strategic transport appraisal (Stag) report for the link at a cost of £100,000 the next step in taking the proposal forward.
The minister has agreed that Transport Scotland officials will help with the preparation of the report. The commitment was given during a meeting with Fife Council leader David Ross to discuss the possibility of opening the six-mile stretch of track between Leven and Thornton.
Campaigners have hailed it as a significant step forward and Mr Ross told The Courier: “I stressed once again to the minister that Levenmouth is the largest urban area in Scotland without a rail link.
“My concern has always been that there was no scope for bringing these proposals forward with any hope of success during the current transport planning period up to 2028. Our discussions with the minister now indicate that the door is not closed to us on this issue.
“On that basis, I have asked our officials to seek formal approval from the council for the updating of the strategic transport appraisal report on the Levenmouth rail link.”
The sum of £2 million committed by the local authority for the bid is still available.
Allen Armstrong, secretary of the Levenmouth Rail Campaign (LMRC), hailed the announcement. “I’m very relieved,” he said. “It’s as good an outcome as we could have hoped for.
“It’s a green light to the council to say their money wouldn’t be wasted if they do the Stag report. It’s a signal that if we do a good appraisal and it stacks up, we might well get in the queue.”
Mr Armstrong added that while Levenmouth was showing some signs of stirring from decades of deindustrialisation, major investments by Diageo and the Fife Energy Park were being hampered by poor road and rail accessibility.
“A key missing link is the reinstatement of the Thornton to Leven line,” he said. “With higher-than-average levels of unemployment and deprivation, local people need better transport options to improve their economic options, which the rail link to the national network would bring.”
MSP David Torrance, who was also at the meeting with Mr Brown, said: “It was a very positive meeting with Transport Scotland and Keith Brown but it is very important Fife Council gets the Stag report done as quickly as possible,” he said.
“There is a Scottish stations fund available and a rail freight fund, which the council can bid for, but the downside is most of the councils bidding are putting in a lot more money than Fife Council.
“If they are not in a position to get this done quickly and bid for these two funds, the next round of funding is not until 2019 five years away.
“They must get this done right away because this is vitally important to regenerate Levenmouth, both economically and socially.”