Stratford-Upon-Avon Local Sustainable Transport Project gets £4.995m funding

Project will deliver Stratford Parkway Station and transport investments for the town

The Stratford-Upon-Avon Local Sustainable Transport Project will be awarded £4.995m funding, the Department for Transport has announced.

The government funding will deliver Stratford Parkway Station and an additional package of transport improvements for the town including enhancements to the Park and Ride bus services.

Warwickshire County council has spearheaded a team which includes London Midland, Centro and Network Rail, to secure this major step forward in securing a large slice of the funding for the £8.86m scheme.

It is now working to secure the remaining funding which would see a new multi-million pound station built next to the existing Park and Ride.

The bid won the support of rail users, potential passengers, both Stratford District Council and Stratford Town Council, Sustrans, the Shakespeare Line Promotion Group and Rail Future.

It is forecast that the project will attract 114,000 new rail trips to the new station and the existing town station by 2024/25. The extra revenue generated will help fund more trains during weekdays, on Saturdays and provide a regular evening service to both Stratford stations.

As part of the project, Centro, the transport authority for the West Midlands, has agreed to help fund extra train services between Stratford and Birmingham.

The new parkway station will also have Stratford's first electric car charging point and a bike hire scheme similar to London's popular 'Boris Bikes' initiative.

It is hoped that new evening and weekend services will start in April 2012 and the weekday off-peak services will start when the station opens in December 2013.

Cllr Peter Butlin, Warwickshire County Council's Portfolio Holder for Highways and Transport said: "The project is great for existing and new rail passengers in Stratford and surrounding areas and will help to put the town back on the railway map."

"The vastly improved services which Stratford Parkway will attract will benefit both the new station  and the existing Stratford Town Station."

Further information:
Warwickshire County Council