Border Union Dream the Inside Story of Britain's Boldest Rai

The 1969-70 bid by the Border Union Railway Company (BURCo) to re-open the axed Waverley Route from Edinburgh to Carlisle captured the imagination of Borders folk and the wider railway world. Many were left sorely disappointed when the dream crumbled, but the story continues to fascinate rail enthusiasts. Between 2009 and 2012, David Spaven discussed the BURCo saga in depth with two of its three directors, and from extensive archive sources summarised the key events within his Waverley Route: the life, death and rebirth of the Borders Railway. Now, with the 50th anniversary of Waverley Route closure on 6th January 2019 and further archive material unearthed, it is time to tell the full story: a heady mix of blue-skies thinking, political jockeying with British Rail, and over-optimism, sometimes bordering on fantasy. Illustrated with maps and 115 largely unpublished photos from the period, Border Union Dream reveals the turbulent inside story of a unique episode in British railway preservation history.