Great Western Coffee Shop

Controversial plans for a new railway station between Cheltenham and Gloucester have been shelved after the government said it wanted more details (link below.)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/6645811.stm

The Department for Transport told the county council it needed to resolve "a number of outstanding issues" before the ^40m Parkway scheme could go ahead.

There have been concerns that a new station could lead to the closure of one or both of the other two at Gloucester and Cheltenham.

The DfT has asked for commitment to the scheme from train operators.

But Gloucestershire County Council said that was not possible because the government was still in the process of awarding new franchises.

The new station had featured as part of the South West Regional Planning Assessment For The Railway (link below.)
http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=299.msg799#msg799

I'm not too sure what to make of this. On one side Gloucester does badly need improved services, and a P&R station would be of massive benefit to traffic, etc. But then again, it is likely Cheltenham Spa would see severe cuts in services or be closed and Gloucester's main station could also be closed, the former of which could spark massive protests. If it wasn't for Cheltenham Spa and its frequency of services, I wouldn't have gone to University there.
What I still think is a better idea is a hourly fast service to Bristol & the south from Gloucester's current station, as well as the local service, or at the very least one or two more VXC stops.

Why consider shutting either Gloucester or Cheltenham stations.

All the recent industrial, business and residential development along the M5 between Gloucester/Cheltenham justifies the need for a new Park and Ride station.

This can be used to generate more local services in Gloucestershire, and to Bristol/Swindon, and can be used for London bound traffic.

The use of Gloucester and Cheltenham stations would change, but both would still be needed.