A NEW BRIDGE and a much-needed car park for Pershore Railway Station are among the items on a £2milllion shopping list revealed by Wychavon District Council.
Transport bosses at the Civic Centre have rubber-stamped a seven-figure sum in a bid to help boost the number of people using the town’s station.
Members of the Executive Board agreed to put £500,000 towards the building of a new £1.5million ‘flow footbridge’ linking the station to council-owned land at Dawes Way in Pinvin.
Flow crossings are a recent innovation from Network Rail which reflect their modern flowing design.
They are made from fibre-reinforced polymer, so are lighter and cheaper than steel bridges. It is hoped the bridge could be completed during summer 2023 once funding from other partners has been found to carry out the work.
Wychavon has also agreed to invest another £1.5million into developing a car park with more than 300 spaces at Dawes Way once the bridge is finished. This would either be leased to the train operator – currently Great Western Railway – to deliver a return for taxpayers or run by Wychavon itself.
Improving parking provision at the station is one of the promises in Wychavon’s corporate strategy. A lack of parking is one of the major deterrents to people using the station to travel by train.
Improving parking and walking and cycling links to the station is also crucial to support the development of 2,000 new homes at Throckmorton. It also supports Wychavon’s ambition to encourage people to travel more sustainably.
Coun Martin King, the council’s executive board member for Resources and Investment, said: “This has been a long time coming and it is a welcome step towards the completion of a lengthy project that without our support may otherwise disappear into thin air.
“This is an investment Pershore and the surrounding area desperately needs.
“It will support rail travel in the area and it is another example of Wychavon delivering on our commitments.”
