Plans for a rail bypass around Stafford should include a station on that stretch of line.

Jeremy Lefroy, who is a member of the national Railfuture organisation which campaigns for better railways throughout the UK, says that such a station would be likely to bring substantial benefits to Stafford, Stone and West and North Staffordshire.

“We tend to be too short-term in our planning for transport. There is every chance within a few years, we will be seeing trains direct from Glasgow or Manchester to Paris and beyond. They will inevitably use the Stafford bypass route.

“With a ‘Stafford Parkway’ station in place, probably with longer platforms to accommodate the 18-coach Eurostar/TGV trains, passengers from Staffordshire and further afield within the West Midlands will have direct access to the continent. This could also be very important in winning over passengers currently travelling by air.
It should not reduce the number of services calling at Stafford station as it will opening up a new market for rail travel.

“Two weeks ago, I decided to travel on business by train from London to Zurich by train instead of taking the plane. It took 8 hours 30 minutes, which included one and a half hours to change stations in Paris. The equivalent journey by air would have taken me about six hours, including travel to the airport and waiting to check in. The cost was fairly similar.

“High speed rail is becoming a reasonable alternative for many journeys within Europe as well as the UK. We must ensure that Stafford Staffordshire, and the North West Midlands are ‘plugged’ in to the network.”

(Photo courtesy Matton Imgaes)