Worcestershire Parkway Station project - ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[Witham Bobby]

The long-awaited plan to provide a new station where the Cotswold line crosses the Midland Gloucester to Birmingham route have taken a step forward.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hereford-worcester-34049248

[chuffed]

I wonder what this means for Worcester Shrub Hill ? Just after completing the magnificent restoration of the cast iron ladies waiting room on Platform 2 .....

[ChrisB]

It's not going to be plain sailing though - it appears a developer has first dibs....

From the Worcester News

Business owner threatens legal action over Norton Parkway station

A WORCESTER businessman has threatened to take legal action against Worcestershire County Council if it refuses to enter into an agreement over the long-awaited Norton Parkway train station.

The ^22 million station in the village on the south east edge of Worcester has been mooted for decades but could finally get the green light at a meeting of the county council^s planning committee on Tuesday, August 25.

But managing director of Lowesmoor Wharf-based Norton Parkway Developments Stennard Harrison has accused the council of refusing to engage with him over the project.

The firm has a legal right to purchase the land lasting until August 2018 and has already entered into an agreement to deliver the project with Capita, which among other projects is currently working on the HS2^▸ (The next High Speed line(s)) rail line.

Speaking exclusively to your Worcester News Mr Harrison said he will not back down and believes his firm would be able to deliver the project at a much lower cost to the taxpayer.

^Unless we reach an agreement with the county council by August 26 we will go to arbitration,^ he said. ^We will go all the way to judicial review if we have to.

^This is the county council^s last chance.^

In a letter to members of the council^s planning committee the council Mr Harrison said he had been attempting to engage with council officers over the project, which is expected to be completed by May 2017, for ^a considerable period^ but had found them ^unwilling to engage^.

^We have found the council^s stance to be most frustrating particularly since our development partner has vast experience in matters of this nature and have been keen to communicate with the council^s representatives in order to try and move matters forward,^ he said.

^Subject to receiving co operation from the council we confirm that we can deliver the proposed station within the preferred timetable and at a cost to the tax payer which is substantially less than the figures currently envisaged by the county council.

^In addition the county council will already have spent a large amount of the taxpayer^s money pursuing the planning application when in our opinion this work could easily have been carried out by the private sector at no expense to the local authority.^

A Worcestershire County Council spokesman said: ^Council officers have met with representatives of this developer on numerous occasions over the past two years.

^Consideration will be given to any deliverable scheme which offers better value to the public up to the point where it commits to its own current scheme.^

The new station will link to the Cotswolds and Birmingham to Bristol lines and will include a booking office, toilets, shop and 500 parking spaces as well as a taxi rank, bus stops and a drop-off area. It already has ^7.5 million of funding from the government, with the council expected to take out a ^14 million loan to fund the rest.

Worcester Shrub Hill is expected to close when the new station opens.

The press got that completely wrong - the council stated categorically at the start of yesterday's meeting that it won't be closing. But three stations for a City the size of Worcester?!!

[Btline]

This station will be a complete waste of money. I am horrified that Network Rail are letting it proceed (they must be furious).

The only XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) services that will stop are the Cardiff to Nottinghams, which are already overcrowded. But as the journey time to Bham will be quicker, I expect Malvern and South Worcester folks to cram onto the gridlocked A4440 to Parkway. Hardly a green station.

Even if they extend LM^▸ (London Midland - recent franchise) services to Parkway (not possible due to the single track) people from North Worcestershire (Stourbridge, Kidderminster) travelling to Bristol will have to change TWICE. At Parkway and Cheltenham!
As it happens, it will be THREE times. Perhaps people will just drive to the station or go via Bham....

The Cotswold line is too infrequent and unreliable to provide East to South connections.

The best solution as I've said before is to extend a Snow Hill service from Shrub Hill to Gloucester every hour. Same platform interchange at Cheltenham = job done. It would probably just require a couple of extra units.

[JayMac]

The only XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) services that will stop are the Cardiff to Nottinghams,

Supposition? If not, source?

[ChrisB]

XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) boss has verbally stated this. I guess the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) can specify others in the next franchise ITT^▸ (Invitation to Tender) if that's their wish

[grahame]

Stations / justifications come with decades of use planned ... but public transport services can come and go and be changed on a really short timescale.  I can find you a brand new service that was recently had its funding pulled based on an evaluation just 47 weeks after it started.  So with a new station one eye needs to look at current services and plans which may be cautious in terms of calls, and the other eye needs to be looking to the future - both tactics and strategy form part of the mix, and in the long term it's the strategy that rules.

I don't know Worcester, but many of the discussions here are tactics. What about the strategy?

[JayMac]

XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) boss has verbally stated this. I guess the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) can specify others in the next franchise ITT^▸ (Invitation to Tender) if that's their wish

Source?

It's unlikely to be in the gift of the current XC operator anyway. DfT can specify changes to current franchise if they wish. Worcester Parkway is specifically mentioned in the current XC franchise agreement and the operator is bound to "work constructively" to deliver the project.

[ChrisB]

Mark Cooper.

Cardiff-Nottingham's are their offer....that is being constructive.

[Richard Fairhurst]

I'd have loved that when I was commuting weekly from Charlbury to Burton-on-Trent...

Sadly I suspect that not only will the trains be run by CrossCountry, the fares (and restrictions) will be set by them too, which will continue to make changing at Shrub Hill a more attractive option.

[ellendune]

Sadly I suspect that not only will the trains be run by CrossCountry, the fares (and restrictions) will be set by them too, which will continue to make changing at Shrub Hill a more attractive option.

Won't parkway be in a group called Worcester All Stations?

[ChrisB]

It ought....does it already exist for the two current stations?

If not, maybe that'll continue?

[Btline]

I suspect the Northbound fares will be set higher for Parkway than the city centre to prevent everyone driving there in the morning peak and swamping the Cardiff to Nottinghams.

I doubt that XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) will stop anything else there as it would screw up the journey times. Bristol to Bham is already almost 90 mins which isn't acceptable. These journey times need to be cut to be competitive against the M5.

One thing in its favour is that the XC Bromsgrove stops will probably be removed once the station is rebuilt*, easing the congestion on Cardiff to Nottinghams.

*XC call as LM^▸ (London Midland - recent franchise)'s peak services are too long for the short platforms.

[JayMac]

Bristol to Bham is already almost 90 mins which isn't acceptable. These journey times need to be cut to be competitive against the M5.

Central Bristol to central Birmingham by car is 1 hour 40 mins if you get a clear run. Last two times I did a similar journey (actually from nearer the M5 in North Bristol) it took 2 hours.

The train takes 1 hour 28 mins max. A stop at Worcester Parkway would add, at most, 5 minutes to the schedule.

[PhilWakely]

Bristol to Bham is already almost 90 mins which isn't acceptable. These journey times need to be cut to be competitive against the M5.

Central Bristol to central Birmingham by car is 1 hour 40 mins if you get a clear run. Last two times I did a similar journey (actually from nearer the M5 in North Bristol) it took 2 hours.

The train takes 1 hour 28 mins max. A stop at Worcester Parkway would add, at most, 5 minutes to the schedule.

Plus time from home to station and also at the other end ??