CAMPAIGNERS have been told that their ambitions for a new railway station between Burnley and Todmorden must be put on ice because of low projected passenger numbers.

Villagers in Cornholme and Portsmouth had lobbied for the reinstatement of a halt to serve the Calderdale communities, and nearby Cliviger, with hopes renewed by the re-opening of the Todmorden Curve.

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But public transport bosses have confirmed that four other locations, including Elland in Calderdale, are their priority sites.

Work is well advanced on three other station sites, including Low Moor in Calderdale and Crosshills.

Rail manager James Nutter, of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, said: “It is our considered opinion that, at the moment, Cornholme does not have the demand.

“But that is not to say, in future, if there was sufficient development in the area, that we would not look at it again.”

The study, which examined 62 possible station projects, had looked at potential passenger numbers on the basis of how many could reach a site by either car, walking or cycle, from the local area, he said.

Town councillors in Todmorden were told that two potential sites had been examined in Cornholme, one positioned roughly on the site of the former Portsmouth station, closed in 1958, and another further along Burnley Road.

But for at least one of the sites, the projected daily passenger numbers were no more than 30.

And with an anticipated development cost per station of £10 million it would not provide the expected return on that investment within five years.

Pete Myers, an external relations manager for Northern Rail, said the company would look to provide services for any station provided.

But he added: “You can put too many stations on one line, reducing the overall journey time.”

Borough and town councillor Janet Battye said park and ride facilities, for the Cornholme area for Todmorden Station, should now be a pressing concern.

The original station at Cornholme was closed in 1938 and the other platform between Burnley and Todmorden, at Stansfield Hall, only survived until 1944.