THE clock is ticking towards decision day in the race between 42 towns across the country to become the home of Great British Railways (GBR), the now organisation created to run the nation's rail tracks.

The creation of GBR was announced last year by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps in the Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail. GBR will be a single entity that ends the fragmentation of the rail industry, and the government is backing it to benefits and improvements across the network for passengers and freight customers.

The government has also insisted that, as part of its levelling up strategy, the new company's HQ will be outside London and it created a national competition, inviting submissions from towns and borough's across the Uk.

42 have been received, covering the length and breadth of the county and they will be cut down to a shortlist later this month – and then there will be a people's vote to guide the government towards picking the final location.

Among the many towns to apply, the nearest to Thurrock is Bishops Stortford which finds itself competing against many great British historic railways centres, including York, Doncaster and Darlington.

Another historic rail town is Crewe, which has also just become the new home of the headquarters of Nub News, where our parent company has just invested in new offices as the nationwide network of independent news platforms moves towards the second phase of its expansion.

So with bare-faced pride, the Nub News' CEO Karl Hancock has pitched Nub News behind the Crewe bid. Nub News believes Crewe's bid is the right one for the whole of the country, with its strong connectivity, expertise, heritage and infrastructure making it an ideal location to ensure the benefits of the headquarters will flow out around Britain. 

Mr Hancock added: "We are delighted to be backing Crewe's bid to be the home of Great British Railways. Crewe has for a long time been at the heart of rail in this country and rail is at the heart of the town – it truly can offer the heritage, infrastructure and expertise needed to make this opportunity a success for the whole country. 

"Whether you are reading this in Dorset, Devon, Somerset, Cheshire, London, the Midlands or anywhere else in the country, here at Nub News we believe this is a bid not just for the people of Crewe but the entire country. 

"It is one of the best-connected towns in the country and I'm sure many of our readers will have gone through it on the train or even changed there. The levelling-up impacts that GBR will bring to Crewe won't simply stay there but will flow throughout the country due to these strong links. 

"Alongside this, we are pleased that our own headquarters will soon be moving to Crewe. As Nub News continues to grow we want to make sure we are connected to our communities in Cheshire but also around the country – and we think Crewe is the place to do that. 

"Soon, the public will have the chance to vote on where Great British Railways and we'd urge all of our communities to get behind Crewe."

Crewe's bid was submitted by Cheshire East Council and its partners. Cllr Sam Corcoran, Leader of Cheshire East Council, said: "We're really pleased that Crewe's bid has the backing of Nub News so we can get our message out there to their audiences. 

"We're proud of the bid we have submitted. We firmly believe this is a great bid for Crewe, for Cheshire East and that the benefits that bringing this opportunity here will flow around the country. 

"We also look forward to welcoming Nub News to the town. Businesses choosing to invest in Crewe is a real vote of confidence and really highlights our strong links to the rest of the country."

Cllr Craig Browne, Deputy Leader of Cheshire East Council, said: "There aren't many towns in the country more closely associated with the railways than Crewe. Bringing Great British Railways here will be the next step in our long and proud rail story.

"We want to take the public with us on this journey and show them why this is a great opportunity, as well as telling the whole country why we are the right place for the headquarters. The support of Nub News will help us to do this, especially when it comes to the public vote.

"Anyone who wants to can pledge their support to our campaign and get updates by going to www.gbrcrewe.co.uk."

The full list of towns that have submitted bids is as follows: Barrow in Furness, Birmingham, Bishops Stortford, Bolton, Camborne, Carlisle, Carnforth, Coventry, Crewe, Darlington, Derby, Didcot, Doncaster, Dundee, Durham, Eastleigh, Edinburgh, Fife, Gloucester, Grantham, Greater Manchester, Heywood, Hull, Liverpool, Milton Keynes, Motherwell, Newcastle, Northampton, Nuneaton, Perth, Peterborough, Preston (Lancs), Southampton, Stockton-on-Tees, Swindon, Tamworth, Tonbridge, Wakefield, Wellingborough, West of England combined authority (including Bristol and Bath), Worcester and York