The Leader of Crewe Town Council, Cllr Simon Yates, welcomed the announcement by the Government that it confirms its support for the Crewe Hub vision. Cllr Yates said this is great news for the town and means that detailed planning can now commence in earnest. The extra detail starts to bring even more certainty to a project that will help drive forward the shared vision for Crewe. It reinforces the premier status of Crewe as the key gateway to north, south, east and west. Crewe is and always will be the centre of the rail network and I’d claim Crewe to be the best-connected town in the UK. Everyone needs to make the most of this unique selling point to promote and regenerate the town. It will mean change and I expect that will include the rejuvenation of infrastructure in the town. The headlines set out by the government include:
- provision of 400m platforms, extending Platform 5, to allow for the splitting and joining of HS2 services, which also opens opportunities to serve Stoke-On-Trent via HS2
- a more efficient design for the proposed platform on the Manchester independent lines, incorporating a transfer deck to the main station
- a change to the design of the southern connection from HS2, so that HS2 joins (and takes over) the central two lines on the existing network
Realising the Crewe Hub vision in full will require delivery of the planned Network Rail renewals, local and national government working together, and a local funding contribution to support future potential investment decisions including for:
- a junction north of Crewe, enabling HS2 trains to call at Crewe and then re-join the HS2 main line, as part of Phase 2b
- completing the full transfer deck across the station to Weston Road and potentially to Gresty Road with new entrances to support local regeneration ambitions and further improve the passenger experience
Network Rail continues to evaluate whether, as part of its renewal design, reinstatement of platform 13 would be an affordable alternative to the independent lines platform. If so, this would be a further improvement for transferring passengers and freight.
This is really great news for Crewe and the Town Council stands ready to support all parties in making HS2 a success for Crewe and the surrounding area.’
Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hs2-crewe-hub-consultation-governments-response
