Buxton Lime stays on the rails
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• Chances of a bonanza for tipper operators faded last week as Buxton Lime's contract with British Rail expired, but its annual 400,000 tonnes of limestone stayed on the rails.
Buxton wants a Section 8 grant to help cover the cost of new wagons and investment in railhead facilities: "My guess is that we will be treated with some sympathy," says managing director Nick Pilling.
For now the company is sticking with the railways using its existing fleet of wagons: it plans to hire lighter models within a few months.
Road haulage could half the cost of moving the limestone; this, set against environmental considerations, has led to some hard bargaining between BR and the company. The debate was prompted by a 280% hike in BR's Trainload Freight's rates.
"If we stick with rail it will cast us significantly more—we would have to count it as an environmental cost," says Pilling.