Disused railway lines should be protected from development because they may have to be re-opened to relieve overcrowded roads, according to the Tories.

Chris Grayling, the Shadow Transport Secretary, said that the lines in most urgent need of protection were the Lewes to Uckfield line in East Sussex, the Oxford to Milton Keynes line, the Woodhead tunnel route between Manchester and Sheffield and the Leamside line in the North East.

He wrote to the Government asking it to prohibit developers from building on the routes and demolishing stations. His letter said: “I am writing to ask you to impose a two-year moratorium on the sale of land on former transport routes; establish an independent study to assess the potential of each disused route including old stations and car parks for future transport needs and then put in place long-term protections.”

Mr Grayling said that many housing developments were designed with inadequate public transport links.

Transport 2000, the environmental group, welcomed the Conservative initiative and called on the Government to set out long-term plans for reopening lines in its rail White Paper, due to be published in July.

Stephen Joseph, its director, said: “Reopenings will be needed to serve the many new and planned developments, and also to provide better regional links. This is about giving people real choice for more journeys, and tackling congestion and pollution.

“But many of these lines are under threat from development. For years we have been saying they should be firmly protected through the planning system, and we support the Conservatives’ call for a moratorium on development and a review of their potential.

“This should be a nonparty issue, and we hope the Government will agree to the Conservatives’ request and protect lines for future use.”

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