June 2014 marks five years since the publication of the Connecting Communities report into potential opportunities to expand the rail network. This blog will be publishing a set of posts during June to review the progress that has been made to date. This is the tenth post in the “Five Years On” series.
This post reviews the progress of two of the railway stations in the West Midlands.
Aldridge
It would be located on the line between Walsall and Water Orton (Sutton Park Freight Line), with proposals to run the service from Birmingham New Street for 3 miles from Ryecroft Junction. ATOC assumed that the line would not be electrified. With expenses of £6m, the route was expected to have a BCR of 1.7.
The Black Country Strategic Transport Board has been discussing options for allocating funds from the Major Scheme Funding scheme. The board have allocated £5.2 million to a project worth £23.2 million to restore the railway station and electrify the route.
The proposal has been put forward for investment from the Black Country Strategic Transport Board but this was unsuccessful.
The Black Country LEP has put the restoration project forward for its bid.
Brownhills
This proposal was to deliver a five mile branch or a 10 mile diversion route between Lichfield and Walsall. With expected costs of £52m, the BCR was expected to be 1.7.
The route does not appear to have had much development in the last five years, with the focus on the Aldridge proposal.
It is obvious that if the line to Aldridge is not electrified the station will never open, l have tried to get information from Centro. Will it be electrified yes or no, Walsall Council have done little to promote Aldridge station just talk.