Support for Rail Schemes Contingent on Crewe Benefits, Council States

A council has indicated that two proposed new rail schemes traversing Cheshire East might receive “provisional support” on the condition that Crewe and the broader borough derive advantages. These projects would involve the construction of several miles of new railway lines within Cheshire East to facilitate new services. The first of these initiatives is a Liverpool to Manchester railway segment of Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), which presently lacks any direct connections for Cheshire East or its railway stations. The second proposal is a Midland to North West Rail Link, which is being considered as a potential alternative to the cancelled phase two section of HS2. A report presented to Cheshire East Council’s corporate policy committee noted that this scheme, unlike HS2, does not currently offer investment and connectivity advantages for Crewe, and instead suggests a tunnel that could bypass the station. Twelve members of the committee cast votes to recommend that the council “provisionally supports” the Liverpool to Manchester scheme, contingent upon the fulfillment of several conditions, one of which is investment at Crewe Station. These members stated that although Cheshire East Council welcomed alternative options to HS2, they recommended that the council “would only lend its support to schemes that put Crewe at the heart of the solution.” Councillor Mark Goldsmith commented that it made “no sense for any new HS2 rail line to miss out Crewe Station entirely.” He further stated, “We must also work with the new government directly to ensure we get the change at Crewe which is now long overdue.” The council is scheduled to vote on the scheme on 11 December. This report was compiled by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organizations. Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.