New viaducts could be needed to make Bradford’s planned railway station a through station, the Transport Secretary has said.
Heidi Alexander said further work was needed to establish whether trains could run through the new station at Bradford Interchange or whether it would remain a terminus, where services reverse direction.
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, she warned that new viaducts could affect neighbouring properties and communities. Network Rail is expected to spend the next year or so examining the options.
Her comments followed Tuesday’s Department for Transport announcement that the new station would be built on the Interchange site. A previous proposal for a through station at St James’ Market, off Wakefield Road, has been scrapped.
The decision was welcomed at Bradford Council’s Scale Up conference at Bradford Live, although local leaders made clear they still wanted a through station and better connections to Manchester via Huddersfield.
Council leader Stephen Place described the announcement as a “landmark, history making moment for Bradford”.
“Bradford needs infrastructure that matches its potential,” he said.
He told the conference that two of the council’s four ambitions had now been met: securing a new station and ensuring it was in the city centre.
“Bradford must be connected on a through line network rather than remaining a terminus, and an improved connection to Manchester via Huddersfield should be prioritised,” he added.
Ms Alexander visited Bradford Interchange before attending the conference, accompanied by West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin.
“What a huge day for Bradford. It is absolutely massive,” Ms Brabin said.
“There have been many people on this journey to get here, and we have to credit [former Bradford Council leader] Susan Hinchcliffe for her decade-long ambitions to have a new station here in Bradford.”
Ms Brabin welcomed Bradford’s place in the Northern Powerhouse Rail investment programme.
Asked whether she would push for a through station, she said: “We’ll be pushing for a station that works for the people of Bradford. It will be connected by NPR through faster trains.
“For me what matters is that a 1970s station is being replaced by a station we can be proud of. I want to see it become a Kings Cross style station with the regeneration that comes with it.”
Asked about the future of the Interchange’s bus station, Ms Brabin said the development would form part of the Weaver Network, linking buses, trains, trams and active travel.
She said Bradford Council and the mayor’s team were working together to identify a new location for the bus station.
Ms Brabin also welcomed the decision to keep the railway station in the city centre.
“There were other options on the table, some were further out,” she said.
“It might have been a case that you would have had to get on a tram to get into the city centre.
“I’m really pleased the decision has been made to have the station in the city centre.”
Ms Alexander described the announcement as “a good day for Bradford and the wider region”.
“For too long people in the city have had to put up with second rate connectivity. People want more reliable and faster journeys. Having a new station will put Bradford at the heart of Northern Powerhouse Rail,” she said.
“We don’t want it where people miss a train and have to wait an hour, we want people to have a tap in and go railway service.
“We want young people growing up in Bradford not to feel like they have to move out to get ahead in life. We want Bradford to have top class connections with other cities.”
However, she said the station’s design and the surrounding rail network required further investigation before a decision could be made on through services.
“Over the next year or so Network Rail need to do a piece of work to look at this issue very carefully,” she said.
“It might be that new viaducts need to be built and that could have implications for adjoining properties and for the local community, and we need to think through the implications of that.
“As well as considering costs, we need to consider local impact.”
Ms Alexander said more than £1 billion had been allocated to the Northern Powerhouse Rail programme over the next few years. She criticised the previous Conservative government’s plans, saying they had been drawn up “on the back of a fag packet”.
“We’re talking to local leaders so we can work out what the priorities are, we’ve decided to prioritise the Yorkshire improvements. The new station here at Bradford Interchange is an absolutely critical element,” she said.
Addressing the conference, she added: “For too long places like Bradford have been paid lip service at best and written off at worst.”
