Fears coastal erosion could threaten Saltburn freight railway

The Saltburn to Boulby line serves the potash mine at Boulby and the British Steel site at Skinningrove, both major employers in the area.

While the majority of the route is some way inland, it hugs the coast at Huntcliff, Saltburn with only a coastal path, forming part of the Cleveland Way, separating it from the sea.

At a recent Redcar and Cleveland Council climate and environment scrutiny committee, members warned of “cliff instability near rail assets” and questioned officers over the approach being taken.

They also called for better communication with the likes of Network Rail, which maintains rail infrastructure assets, suggesting a “structured forum” should be established with the body and other interested parties to develop current and future strategy.

Saltburn councillor Philip Thomson, a member of the committee, said the line was “very close to the sea”.

Saltburn ward councillor Philip Thomson. Picture/credit: Ian Cooper/Teesside Live. Free for use for all LDRS partners.

He said: “The challenge is monitoring these things.

“The clear lay evidence is that this part of the coast, particularly coming around Huntcliff, has a large question about its longevity.

“The service to the potash line and British steelworks at Skinningrove requires a forward plan, not waiting for further slippage to be planned on the assumption it is going to happen at some time.

“I asked the question [about a forward plan] and the answer came back saying we will just move the path to the other side of the railway line.

“That is all very well if the railway is not to be jeopardised as well.”

Cllr Thomson said Network Rail’s (NR)position was unclear and he had asked the council’s highways department to make a formal approach to NR with a view to a report being brought back to the committee.

Philip Chisholm, from Redcar, a former councillor with Langbaurgh Borough Council – Redcar and Cleveland’s predecessor – contacted the Local Democracy Reporting Service  with his concerns earlier this year.

Philip Chisholm. Picture/credit: Supplied. Free for use for all LDRS partners.

He described how the freight line “clings to the cliff edge” with the Cleveland Way being “squeezed into a narrowing space” between the railway and the sea.

Mr Chisholm also described how last year sections of the walking route had been closed after rock falls.

He said: “The underlying geology has been unstable for decades, but climate change, heavier rainfall, and accelerating coastal erosion have turned a long-term issue into an immediate risk. 

“The question is no longer whether the railway is vulnerable, but whether we are prepared to act before it is lost.”

Mr Chisholm said the rail link was a “working artery” supporting East Cleveland’s industrial economy and freight access was “vital” to both the steelworks at Skinningrove and the Boulby potash mine.

He said: “The loss of the line would ripple through supply chains, employment, and regional competitiveness.

“Despite the scale of the risk, there remains no clearly articulated, publicly visible strategy that convincingly secures the railway’s future.”

Mr Chisholm said essential infrastructure investment could secure a solution in the form of engineered coastal protection and “cliff stabilisation”.

He said: “These are not optional extras. If this line were lost to the sea, the cost of rebuilding – if rebuilding were even possible – would dwarf the cost of acting now.”

Network Rail did not respond to a request for a comment.

A Redcar and Cleveland Council spokeswoman said the coastline in question was subject to a shoreline management plan (SMP) – as with other areas of the UK – with councils and the Environment Agency working together to make assessments as part of regional coastline groups.

She said: “The main purpose of SMPs is to identify long-term policy options to manage the shoreline in a sustainable way.

“The [current] policy is no active intervention…and not to encourage new defences.”

The Tees Valley Combined Authority, which previously set money aside for a feasibility study looking at the potential of passenger services being reinstated to the line, also did not respond to a request for comment.

Last year Redcar and Cleveland Council said planned engineering works to divert a cliff top road at Cowbar, near Boulby, were being brought forward after coastal erosion forecasts were updated and identified a much greater risk of collapse than previously thought.

It has continued to list the issue among several ‘red risks’ included in its corporate risk register, which is reviewed twice a year.