New Chair and Vice Chair for CBR

As well as celebrating the day’s great news about the Borders Railway, the 2012 CBR AGM at the Scottish Mining Museum yesterday elected a new Chair and Vice Chair to take over from Lorne Anton and Richard Crockett, who had decided to stand down.

Taking over as Chair is Simon Walton from Fountainhall, who writes:

“Born in Loanhead, a small mining village on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Simon Walton made it into the fifties by just 38 days. He is keenly aware of the ever changing face of Scotland, and saw the last coal trains pull out of the Bilston Glen branch off the Waverley Route.  In fact his very first rail journey was a short trip on that very line.  Though new to the Campaign and to the Borders, Simon is no stranger to the fate of the Waverley Route, and has followed the Borders Railway Project with keen interest for several years.  A media and public relations professional, he counts careers with the BBC and the National Trust for Scotland within his varied portfolio.  Industrial heritage and communications are Simon’s keenest interests, and he can often be found searching in the most unlikely spots for traces of the past.  As a former sound engineer, he’s fascinated by the unattainable aspects of history.  What he’d give to actually hear industrial Scotland all over again.

“For the Campaign, Simon is ambitious to see even greater cooperation between the CBR and the community at large.  There’s a bigger part for the CBR to play, he says, and encouraging a more active and self-reliant Borders is just one part of that.  By working together, he sees the Borders Railway not just a transport link, but an inspiration for greater collaboration in the Borders, and an example of the value of commitment and collective endeavour.  He’s committed to seeing restoration in the light of modern needs, and fully supports the push further south.”

The new Vice Chair is Tom Curry, who is a career railwayman, currently developing new business in Scotland for the rail haulier Direct Rail Services. Tom is also a keen railway enthusiast, and spoke in his professional capacity to an early CBR conference on freight prospects for a re-opened Waverley Route. Recently he has been providing advice to David Spaven on operational aspects of the charter train market for CBR’s campaign push, which was so successfully concluded yesterday.