An MP says he is campaigning to get a railway link reopened for a town which has been without a station for about 60 years.
Mid Cheshire MP Andrew Cooper suggested the Mid Cheshire Rail Link through Middlewich could be developed as part of investment in the region’s railways during a House of Commons debate focussing on Crewe Station.
Mr Cooper used the opportunity to highlight the potential for reintroducing a service through Middlewich, while speaking during a discussion introduced by Crewe and Nantwich MP Connor Naismith.
Middlewich has been without a station since the 1960s and is the largest town in Cheshire without a rail service.
Meanwhile, Mr Naismith described the station in Crewe as a linchpin of the national rail network but added that it is currently “ill befitting as a front door to a town with such a rich rail heritage.”
The government has confirmed £270m of funding for the Crewe area, with work to include replacing the station roof and signalling improvements.
The debate led to calls from fellow Cheshire MPs for enhanced services in their constituencies.
Mr Cooper said: “One destination that people cannot currently get to from Crewe is Middlewich in my constituency.
“Middlewich is about eight and a half miles from Crewe, and its population has increased by 1,000 over the past 10 years and now stands at around 14,500.”
‘Sheer dilapidation’
Mr Cooper asked for provision to be made for extra capacity for future services, including to Middlewich, as Network Rail continues to review the infrastructure around Crewe.
Investment to bring Crewe Station up to 21st century standards was needed, he said, after the decision by the former Conservative government to cancel the now-scrapped leg of HS2 north of Birmingham.
“I have spoken to business leaders who had been considering investing in Cheshire but have been put off by the sheer dilapidation of the station in Crewe,” Mr Cooper said.
Transport minister Lilian Greenwood said that although finances were tight, the government could look at “optimising services, delivering smaller-scale infrastructure interventions” in the North West region.
Mr Cooper has made transport a strong theme of his first six months or so in office.
In October he met with rail bosses to demand quicker repairs at Northwich Station, which he later confirmed would take place this summer, three months earlier than originally scheduled.
In December he joined fellow Cheshire MP Sarah Russell to call for the government to support the Middlewich Eastern Bypass scheme.
The project is considered not only to be important for easing traffic in the town, but may also prove crucial for Cheshire East Council’s finances as well, with bosses warning the authority “could go bust” if it does not proceed.
Cheshire East Council is due to receive a decision from government about the bypass scheme later this month.
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