College site sold for £1 to keep rail station plan on track
LANCASHIRE County Council’s cabinet has approved the acquisition of the former Skelmersdale College site for £1.
It has approved the allocation of more than £2m to demolish the buildings in preparation for the development of a Skelmersdale railway station.
Cllr John Fillis, speaking on behalf of the county councillors for Skelmersdale, said: “This is another significant step forward in bring a train services back to Skelmersdale, which will be a huge boost to the local economy that will be felt right across West Lancashire and beyond.
“It demonstrates the confidence that people have in Skelmersdale to grow and prosper even in these very difficult times.
“The station development is coming together due to the determination of local residents and their aspirations for themselves and future generations. As representatives we are only as strong as the people we represent.
“MP Rosie Cooper has championed the Skelmersdale train station, which was established within the West Lancashire Highways and Transport
Master Plan in October 2014. Despite changes within the political landscape it has been kept on track, demonstrating its true strategic value within the North West.”
All the required land is now together for the station, parking and retail development in addition to the work already being carried out by West Lancashire Borough Council and partners.
The county council, in partnership with Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, have been working on the Skelmersdale Rail Link and town centre railway station through Network Rail’s Governance for Railway Investment Projects (Grip) process for a number of years, supported by Network Rail and consultants.
This work has almost reached the end of Grip Stage 3 (option selection), which should conclude by the end of summer, following completion of an assessment of traction power options in line with Office of Rail and Road regulations and requirements.
In addition, an assessment of how the new railway line and station will be integrated with the local road network has been undertaken, including highway design.
The county council has committed to fund and develop a strategic outline business case for the scheme, work on which should conclude by the later part of this year.
This will complete Stage 1 of the Department for Transport’s Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline process (the ““determine stage).
The county council and Liverpool City Region Combined Authority will then need to work closely with Transport for the North to move the project forward to Stage 2 (the “develop” stage), although ultimately that decision is taken by the Government.
Any government funding contribution for Stage 2 would be agreed as part of this decision.