Dear editor,
Bedfordshire for a Re-consultation (BFARe) is urging all residents affected by the East West Rail (EWR) project to attend a critical public meeting on Thursday, 6 November 2025.
The event will feature the EWR CEO and other company representatives, providing a rare opportunity for the community to demand answers directly from the top.
The meeting will take place from 6pm to 8pm at the Trinity Arts and Leisure Centre on Bromham Road (MK40 2BS), with doors opening at 5.45pm. Bedford & Kempston MP Mohammad Yasin (Labour) will chair the event.
For years, BFARe and thousands of local residents have raised serious and unaddressed concerns about EWR’s disastrous “Route E” proposal.
The recent confirmation of the project’s progression, with demolition notices already served to families in the Poets area, has amplified the community’s need for transparency and accountability.
Read: All, our EWR coverage
“This meeting is not just another opportunity for EWR Co. to present a polished, one-sided narrative. This is our moment to hold them to account.
“The promises of ‘community engagement’ have consistently fallen short, leaving residents in a state of ‘blight’ and uncertainty for far too long”.
This all-ticketed event requires registration, and residents can submit questions in advance. BFARe is encouraging attendees to use this facility to highlight key issues that EWR Co. has failed to address in past consultations:
- The continued push for the unpopular and damaging “Route E,” despite viable alternatives presented by local authorities.
- The project’s devastating impact on businesses, homes and residents, particularly in the Poets area, with a compensation scheme widely regarded as insufficient and unfair.
- The escalating costs and questionable economic case for the project, which has been described as based on “wishful thinking” by BFARe and other bodies.
- The lack of transparency and a flawed consultation process, which BFARe has long campaigned against.
- The environmental damage to the countryside and the loss of valuable green space.
We urge every resident with concerns to register for this event, pre-submit your most challenging questions, and demand the respect and truthful answers our community deserves. We cannot let EWR continue to railroad our community.”
To register, head to tickettailor.com.
C.White
BFARe comms team
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