Plan to use field for a rail works compound withdrawn

NETWORK RAIL has abandoned controversial plans to turn a York field into a compound for machinery.

Due to house materials, machinery and staff facilities, the proposed construction, next to the railway line in Woodthorpe, attracted opposition from neighbours worried about extra traffic, heavy machinery and nighttime working.

It was originally set to be put 40 metres away from houses in Moor

Lane and would have operated 24 hours a day for nearly three years.

When it was first announced in 2021, it led to one couple losing a buyer for their property, though it has since been sold.

The compound plans related to the programme of work on the line between York and Church Fenton, as part of the Transpennine upgrade.

In response to local concerns, Network Rail paused their plans and in April 2021 the organisation proposed locating the compound further away from neighbouring properties.

Now, the organisation is to rely on a new logistics hub near Sherburn-in-Elmet.

Dringhouses and Woodthorpe councillor Stephen Fenton, who has been supporting residents, welcomed the news.

He said: “This issue has rumbled on for over a year since the plans were first announced, and so I am pleased that Network Rail have been able to find a solution which will enable the upgrade work to go ahead without the need to create a compound on this green field site.

“Apart from the noise nuisance that residents feared would be created, there were also concerns about vehicles accessing and exiting the site via a very busy stretch of Moor Lane. The local community, and Network Rail, can now move on from this episode.”