Acting icon Edward Fox has forced a council to U-turn on plans for a controversial railway crossing in his hometown after delivering a passionate speech.
The fired-up Day of the Jackal star criticised Network Rail for plans to build a ‘hideous’ modern ramped bridge on Grade II-listed Victorian station at Wareham, Dorset, at a protest last month.
Mr Fox, 87, who also played Lt Gen Brian Horrocks in the 1977 World War II film A Bridge Too Far, received enthusiastic applause from 250 people as he urged local Liberal Democrat MP Vikki Slade to ‘go into battle for the community and not kowtow to the bureaucrats’.
Dorset Council previously said they intended to work with Network Rail but have now backed down.
Nick Ireland, the leader of the local authority, said the ‘strength of the Wareham community’s opposition to previous proposed alternatives cannot be ignored.’
Residents of Wareham, a picturesque town of 6,000, have used a red-brick footbridge and a level crossing to cross rail tracks for more than 40 years.
Around half of the town’s population live on the north side of the railway, with the crossing being the only pedestrian route to the town centre.
Although there have been no accidents in that time, Network Rail said the crossing is a health and safety risk and want to replace it with a sloping zig-zag bridge.
Locals feared losing access to vital services as they were concerned about being unable to walk up the lengthy, uphill bridge.
Acting icon Edward Fox (pictured) forced Dorset council to U-turn on plans for a controversial railway crossing in his hometown after delivering an impassioned speech
Around 250 people attended a protest where Mr Fox he urged local Liberal Democrat MP Vikki Slade to ‘go into battle for the community and not kowtow to the bureaucrats’
Pictured: the previous plan for a modern ramped bridge at Wareham’s Grade II listed Victorian station
The star played Lt Gen Brian Horrocks in the 1977 World War II film A Bridge Too Far
At the protest against the bridge earlier this month, Mr Fox said the bridge would inflict ‘irreversible damage’ in making ‘a permanent blot on Wareham’s historic station.’
He added: ‘I challenge the decision makers who are considering a ramped bridge to push a wheelchair up one.
‘You can’t ask mothers on a wet, cold, terrible night to take their children on a road that is extremely busy.
‘It is not just unfair, but criminally bad.’
The Liberal Democrat-run Dorset Council said they now ‘oppose the closure’ of the level crossing due to the ‘clear message sent by Wareham residents including Edward Fox’.
The 87-year-old acting star has lived near town since 1982.
He said: ‘This route has been in existence since Saxon times and has served people well all that time.
‘It is extraordinary and particularly presumptuous that Network Rail is proposing to build a ramped bridge again at Wareham station when three similar schemes have failed.
‘This would cut the town in half, an extraordinary notion in itself, isolate vulnerable residents for whom it would be impossible to use the steep ramps and prevent school children from cycling to school.
Mr Fox, 87, who played Lt Gen Brian Horrocks in the 1977 World War II film A Bridge Too Far, led the town-wide rebellion against the controversial railway crossing.
Residents of Wareham, a picturesque town of 6,000, have used a red-brick footbridge and a level crossing to cross rail tracks for more than 40 years
‘It would be extremely harmful to our charming, historic station, and what a poor first impression it would give to visitors who come to this historic area.’
Announcing Dorset Council’s U-turn, Mr Ireland said: ‘Recently I attended a public demonstration at the crossing alongside local councillors, Vikki Slade MP, and many other prominent community representatives including the actor, Edward Fox OBE.
‘It was a huge turnout of all ages, with a clear message; Wareham residents do not want ramps or lifts to replace the current arrangements.
‘Our previous approach has been to work with partners to find a solution to this closure so pedestrian access can be kept at this location.
‘However, the strength of the Wareham community’s opposition to previous proposed alternatives cannot be ignored.
‘So, rather than accept that the removal of ground-level pedestrian access is inevitable, we are now opposing the closure itself.
He said the council will not impose any solution that involves ramps or lifts and will only consider proposals that maintain ground-level pedestrian access.
Locals feared losing access to vital services as they were concerned about being unable to walk up the lengthy, uphill bridge
Dorset Council U-turned on plans for modernise the station. Nick Ireland, the leader of the local authority, said the ‘strength of the Wareham community’s opposition to previous proposed alternatives cannot be ignored
Fox, right, appeared alongside Michael Caine, left, and a star-studded cast in the 1977 big screen re-telling of the disastrous Arnhem campaign
The current level crossing costs the taxpayer £120,000 a year because the local authority has to employ crossing attendants.
‘We will not spend any more taxpayers’ money chasing something that the residents of Wareham do not need or want,’ Mr Ireland added
‘It’s not Dorset Council’s responsibility to enable Network Rail to pursue deeply unpopular alternative options just so they can close the current crossing.
‘We will stand alongside the Wareham community and fight the closure, because it’s the right thing to do.’
Network Rail said: ‘We recognise the strong attachment the local community has to Wareham level crossing and remain committed to working with everyone to identify a safe, accessible and sustainable long-term solution.
‘The safety of our passengers, residents and colleagues is our number one priority and the most effective way of removing risk at Wareham is to close the crossing entirely.
‘Despite years of efforts to explore safer and fully accessible alternatives – including multiple planning applications and consultations with the community – previous proposals have not been supported by the local planning authority.
‘The crossing has a history of misuse, to the point where our regulator, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), issued us an improvement notice which led to the introduction of electronic gates and crossing attendants, funded by Dorset Council.
‘Network Rail and the ORR are fully aligned that any alternative must be safer and put public safety first, and a recent independent report said only a full closure and replacement with an accessible bridge with lifts or ramps would remove the safety risk entirely.
‘While we know this proposal is contentious, we are committed to working closely with Dorset Council, local stakeholders, and the community to find a way forward.’
