Fenland District Council (the area's primary local authority) put forward their Rail Development Strategy for the route in 2012, which included infrastructure upgrades for the intermediate stations, improved frequencies for the services using it (e.g. doubling the Birmingham New Street to Stansted Airport service to half-hourly and the Ipswich to Peterborough service to hourly) and establishing a Community Rail Partnership for the line in 2013–14.

[3] The line was originally opened by the Eastern Counties Railway company in 1847, linking the ECR mainline from London via Cambridge and Ely to Brandon and Norwich with Peterborough.

Onward travel was also possible over two London and North Western Railway lines from Peterborough, to Rugby and Northampton whilst March would soon become a very busy junction with the opening of branches to King's Lynn via Wisbech and Cambridge via St Ives (both by the ECR) in 1847–48 and the GNR route to Spalding in 1867.

Many of the branches fell victim to the Beeching Axe in the early to mid 1960s, as did Peterborough East and several of the intermediate stations.

To the east most trains continue beyond Ely to Norwich or to Cambridge and Stansted Airport (joining the Breckland Line) or to Ipswich.