Talks taking place on effort to create town rail station
CRUNCH talks are taking place over a bid for a vital train station in Skelmersdale, which is being backed with calls for the Rail Minister to visit the town.
West Lancashire MP Rosie Cooper has highlighted Skelmersdale’s need for a railway station and called upon the new Rail Minister Wendy Morton MP to visit the town ahead of the Department for Transport’s decision on the Skelmersdale Railway proposal.
Proposals to reintroduce a train station to Skelmersdale were submitted by Lancashire County Council to the Government in September last year as part of a ‘Strategic Outline Business Case,’ she said.
She added that officials at the Department for Transport were yet to respond to the proposal but had been in correspondence with her about the process they are following.
Now the West Lancs MP has written to the Rail Minister backing the bid with an open invitation to visit Skelmersdale with her, to see first hand how much of a difference connecting the town to the rail network would be.
Highlighting how the Government has previously expressed support for the campaign, Rosie Cooper MP said that during the 2019 General Election, the Northern Powerhouse Minister said that the Prime Minister had committed to reopen the Skelmersdale railway line, with the Conservative campaign website even naming Skelmersdale as one of the key sites for rail improvements.
Rosie Cooper MP said: “This proposal has been years in the making, and hundreds if not thousands of hours have gone into researching and developing this plan and campaigning for the Government to consider it. Anyone that lives in or has even visited Skelmersdale can tell you how revolutionary it would be to the town, both socially and economically.
“It is one of the largest towns in the country without its own train station, but also has very poor bus links and one of the lowest car ownership rates. It is unbelievable that it has gone this long without a station.
“The Government has been clear in the past that they are supportive of reopening the Skelmersdale railway. In fact, they were very vocal about it during the 2019 election! I will continue to hold them to this commitment while the proposal is being considered.
“The new Rail Minister has only been in her role for a few months, so may not be aware of the proposal yet. I hope she accepts my invitation to walk around Skelmersdale with me to see first-hand what a huge boost this would be.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Transport said: “Regarding the bid, ministers have reviewed the submission from Skelmersdale. The scheme is currently being reviewed for a decision on Government rail enhancement funding, and the announcement will be made through the usual channels.”