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Who we are

The Shakespeare, Solihull & Leamington Rail User Group (SLRUG) exists to encourage the use of train services between Birmingham, Leamington Spa and Stratford-upon-Avon (via both Henley-in-Arden and Solihull), promoting the line’s benefits to residents and visitors in doing so, supporting our local businesses and the local economy. We are also campaigning for the restoration of direct services between Stratford-upon-Avon and London (via Leamington Spa).

Join SLRUG for just £12.00 per year.

Our History

The Shakespeare, Solihull & Leamington Rail User Group (SLRUG) has its origins in two predecessor organisations.

 In the 1960s the North Warwickshire Line Defence Committee (NWLDC) was formed to fight proposals to close the railway through Henley-in-Arden between Tyseley Junction and Bearley Junction.   That closure of the North Warwickshire line was stopped and a further attempt to close the line in 1984 was again thwarted, saved to a large extent by the tenacity of those involved at the time.   The NWLDC decided, after the success of stopping the proposed 1984 closure, that it should change its role to focus on attracting people to use the train and line. It therefore changed its basis and name and was reformed as The North Warwick Line Promotion Group in 1991, later becoming the Shakespeare Line Promotion Group, following a Council-led initiative in 2003 to rebrand the line. The final change to Shakespeare Line Rail User Group took place in 2023.

The Solihull & Leamington Rail Users’ Association (SALRUA) was established in the 1980s in the face of rationalisation and service cutbacks on the Leamington to Birmingham via Solihull line.  Thankfully, sufficient services on the main line through Solihull were maintained enabling it to continue as a key commuter and through route. SLRUG has recently merged with SALRUA, becoming a stronger single voice for all rail users in the area with an enlarged and broader membership base.

Both the Shakespeare and the Solihull lines are now thriving rail routes and have attracted improved infrastructure and train service investment.

We are closely allied with the Friends of the Shakespeare Line, a voluntary Community Station Partnership, whose members look after stations along the line.