Hopes for flood-hit rail arches in £1.6m revamp

Flood-damaged railway arches under the West Coast Main Line are being readied for lease in the new year as a long-awaited £1.6m scheme nears completion, the firm that bought the site in 2019 has said.

Seven years on from the purchase of the dozen disused arches in Carlisle city centre, The Arch Company now hopes to bring businesses back to a "quieter" part of town.

The units on Viaduct Estate Road are a short walk from Carlisle railway station and were previously home to retail businesses, but they have been vacant since Storm Desmond struck in 2015.

A nearby business owner said "it can only be a good thing" to bring life and potential customers back to the area.

Jo Secular-Hall, who co-owns a carpet and interiors shop opposite the site, said the area is quieter than it used to be and there was not much passing trade.

"Up until the floods in 2015 the arches were very much active with different kinds of businesses in there, which was brilliant. A lot more footfall in this area," she said.

"It can only be a good thing to have those back up and running and operational again."

The Arch Company's development director James Seabrooke said improved flood defences along the River Caldew were the "key factor" that gave them the confidence to invest.

"We felt confident that the flood risk was significantly lower than before those works were done," he said.

"It's [had] a huge, huge impact."

The units have not yet been put on the market but the aim is to have them ready to lease in 2027.

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