Station in Bradford to get new platform after £24m from DfT

New platform at Forster Square Station set to be ready int time for Bradford becoming the UK’s City of Culture in 2025

New platform at Forster Square Station set to be ready int time for Bradford becoming the UK’s City of Culture in 2025

Plans for a new platform at Forster Square Station in Bradford are to go ahead after securing £24m in Government funding. Once complete – and subject to future funding decisions – this could result in an extra five London North Eastern Railway (LNER) services a day, more than tripling the current provision, said the DfT.

The extra platform, due to be built by the end of this year, will be at the side of the station closest to Forster Square Retail Park. This means the station will expand outwards by a few metres, with the platform construction requiring Network Rail to buy a strip of land from retail park owners British Land.

The project forms part of the Government’s £36bn Network North plan to improve local transport connections included £2bn for a new station at Bradford and a new connection to improve journey times from the city to Manchester via Huddersfield.

Work to improve transport links will begin in preparation for Bradford becoming the UK’s City of Culture in 2025.

Leader of Bradford Council Susan Hinchcliffe said: “It’s good to see the Government now recognise the value of Bradford being better connected to the entire Northern economy.

“The new platform at Forster Square Station will provide much-needed additional capacity and connectivity for Bradford in time for the district’s year as City of Culture in 2025 and for generations to come, enabling greater mobility and access to opportunity across the district.” Rail Minister Huw Merriman said the funding boost for the new platform follows the DfT’s £500m pledge to upgrade and electrify the railway between Bradford and Leeds. A further £2.5bn will support the West Yorkshire Mass Transit System, which will improve connections between Leeds and Bradford, Huddersfield and Halifax, as part of the Government’s Network North pledge, said Merriman.

Find out more about these and other developments at Rail Stations + Property 2024 on 5th March in London, organised by Landor LINKS, sponsored by Burges Salmon and supported by LTT.

The event will focus on: changing travel patterns, including the resurgence of leisure travel; stations as hubs, with a focus on mobility hubs; and transport-led development with a spotlight on major UK projects.

https://www.landorlinks.uk/rail-stations-2024