Crewe v HS2: the station saga

Crewe Town Council have been writing to Network Rail and HS2 Ltd over the future of the current station in the centre of Crewe.

In March, at the launch of the HS2 Plus report, David Higgins suggesting letting the station sink into disrepair, saying

“The roof was badly damaged in the storms. Rather than repair the station; build a new one south of Crewe allowing connectivity to the rest of the network, linking the north west and north Wales,” he said.

Luckily for the people of Crewe and the 2.5 million passengers per year to the station, this idea was disregarded, with a new entrance opening in May. (The idea of abandoning Crewe station was previously raised in 2008, leading to a local campaign.)

However, Crewe Town Council are still concerned about the future of the station. According to the Crewe and Nantwich Guardian, they have written to HS2 Ltd and Network Rail over concerns that building an HS2 hub station outside town would divert investment.

Crewe Town Council leader, Kevin Hickson, told them

“Employment sites at Basford are important for the future of the town, but they will go ahead with or without the relocation of Crewe station,” he added.

“In fact only last month it was predicted that the construction of the Crewe Green Link Road would create 12, 500 jobs there.

“However, if the existing station is closed, shops and hotels in the vicinity will lose trade, and there will be no incentive for new investment in the area.”

 

One comment to “Crewe v HS2: the station saga”
  1. What does Ruse mean more woodland than now. But possibly less tonnage of wood on the woodland for a century.

    Trees
    THE Woodland Trust has expressed concern that an ancient wood near Castle Donington is going to be directly affected by the planned new high-speed railway HS2.

    The charity says Smooth Coppice Wood is one of 14 ancient woods that lie directly in the path of the proposed Phase 2 route of the plan. Oliver Newham, Woodland Trust senior campaigner, said: “Ancient woodland covers just two per cent of the UK and is widely acknowledged to be a nationally important, irreplaceable habitat.

    “Ancient woods are places of beauty, reservoirs of archaeology and economic history, and a source of inspiration for local culture and folklore. Each ancient wood is a unique product of its location, geology, soils, climate and history – conditions that can never be recreated with new planting.”

    Ben Ruse, a spokesman for HS2, said: “Our woodland areas are important.

    “That is why we have a stated commitment that there will be more woodland when HS2 is completed than there is now.”

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