One of the campaigners hoping to re-open the Ivanhoe Line railway have said that the project is 'very much alive'.

Douglas McLay, Head of Railtech at the Campaign to Re-open the Ivanhoe Line (CRIL) group, was responding to members of a Facebook group dedicated to restoring the route.

He gave an update following comments that there had been little mention of the bid to put passenger trains back on the line between Burton and Leicester - taking in Ashby and Coalville.

It has been almost a year since representatives of CRIL met with the Government and Network Rail to discuss the next stage of plans to re-open the line.

That followed indications that work on the line could start next year - with trains running by 2026, following the closure of the line in 1964 as part of the infamous Beeching cuts.

The former station in Ashby is now home to offices - and Network Rail is searching for a new site in the town. Photo: Ashby Nub News

But Mr McLay said that the plans had not been shelved - with plans for new stations in their early stages.

He posted on the CRIL Facebook page: "The Project is very much alive. There was a team of Department of Transport officials and Network Rail senior manager and engineers in Gresley, Ashby and Coalville yesterday (Monday) looking at station sites.

"I met with them during this visit. This is just one part of the work to produce a design for re-opening the line which Network Rail has received significant Government funding for.

"This is due to be completed by the end of this year. After that we will be ready for work to start on the line itself when funding for the next stage is released by the Government.

"This will of course be contingent on the benefits of re-opening justifying the cost."

Mr McLay underlined the need for public support in the towns that will be connected by the line.

He added: "Local support for the re-opening is a major factor in convincing the Government to go ahead.

"CRIL will be organising means of demonstrating this support.

"In the meantime members of this group can help us with this work by making their support known through this page and by encouraging others to do so too.

"It should be noted that active local authority support and involvement has been critical to the success of Dartmoor and Northumberland Lines in securing Government funding to complete."