Public to get chance to name city’s reborn railway stations

THREE new railway stations are set to open in Birmingham next year – but so far only one of them has been given a name.

Passengers are set to return to Moseley, Stirchley and Kings Heath on the old Camp Hill line for the first time in 80 years.

‘Kings Heath Station’ has already been decided as the obvious name for the suburb’s rail hub, but the public is now being asked to help pick the names for the other two. Residents have a choice between Moseley or Moseley Village, and ‘Stirchley’, ‘Hazelwell’ or ‘Pineapple Road’ for the Stirchley station.

Construction is due to start this year, with the stations open by the end of 2023.

It is part of a £61 million scheme designed to offer residents in those communities a more environmentally-friendly alternative to using the car and sitting in traffic jams on the Alcester Road during their city centre commute.

When train services resume, commuters in Stirchley will face a 14-minute journey into the city centre by rail compared to a peak time 45-minute journey by car.

West Midlands mayor Andy Street said: “Residents have been waiting decades for their local stations to return, and so it is only right they have a say in what they will be called.

“I am delighted that since I was elected mayor we have been able to press on with these plans, and I look forward to seeing diggers in the ground and what station names come out top of the survey.”

The project is led by Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), which is part of the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and the West Midlands Rail Executive.

The WMCA is providing £36 million towards the cost, with £20 million from the Department for Transport (DfT) and the remaining £5 million coming from Birmingham City Council’s Clean Air Zone fund.

Construction firm VolkerFitzpatrick, which is currently building University Station, was last month appointed by TfWM to design and build the three stations.

Visit wmre.org.uk/stationnaming.