BUSINESSES and councillors in Thirsk this week backed plans to give the town a direct rail link to London.

The York-based Grand Central Railway Company hopes to provide the link from December.

This week the plan was seen not only as a boost to existing businesses, but as an extra incentive for new companies to move to the town.

The direct link would be provided by Grand Central's proposed Durham Coast route which would stop at Sunderland, Hartlepool, Eaglescliffe, Northallerton, Thirsk and York.

If approved, the service would also almost double the number of London trains for Northallerton passengers.

Ian Yeowart, managing director, said: "I think passengers will be well-served by the services to London. We have had to build up a business case from scratch, but we've had support from passengers for the scheme.

"All the necessary work has been done to get the idea to the Rail Regulators. We are not over-confident, but quietly confident and we are doing everything we possibly can."

The proposed route would mean Thirsk train-users would not have to change trains to reach the capital for the first time in years.

On Wednesday, Coun Derek Adamson, Thirsk Town Council chairman, said: "Anything to improve the rail service to Thirsk is a good idea. A train to London would be great and welcome as the local trains are not always on time and so don't always meet each other."

GNER does run some London services to Northallerton but they do not stop at Thirsk.

Coun Stephen Hubbard, of Hambleton District Council and Thirsk and District Business Association, welcomed the move. "It would be good. From my point of view as a business person anything which encourages people to come to Thirsk is good," he said.

"There are people here who need to go to London regularly, and it,could encourage people to move out and set up businesses in this area."

Alongside the Durham Coast route, Grand Central plans to set up another route to London from Bradford.

Grand Central plans to run four high-speed trains a day each way on both lines to reach London from York in 1hr 40mins. It also hopes to charge less than GNER for its London service.

If successful, neither route will be paid for by Government subsidy and the services would be funded by Grand Central.

* GNER, which recently won the ten-year, £1.3bn contract to operate trains on the East Coast main line, recently came in for strong criticism after formally opposing Grand Central's plans.

It claimed its own scheme to introduce a bus service between Hartlepool, Stockton and Darlington would be significantly faster than any train service.

Brian Milnes, chairman of the Tees Valley branch of Transport 2000 said it was "unacceptable" that GNER should try to keep other trains off the network.

* Leading article: page 2