Rail link from Wichelstowe to Swindon (Railway Station)?

[whole diary]

[grahame]

From the Swindon Advertiser - a call for rail rather than road connection for Wichelstowe - major new development area.

The Council for the Preservation of Rural England has criticised the plan to build a road under the M4 from the new housing development at Wichelstowe.

But the councillor in charge of the scheme says its needed because it allows easy access for new residents, and that’s important in attracting people to live in the town.

Swindon Borough Council will be constructing the road from the huge 4,500-home development through an underpass under the M4 to the south, where a new roundabout will be constructed. This will give access to Wharf Road to Wroughton, Hay Lane directly south and a road to junction 16 of the M4.

But the CPRE^▸ (Campaign to Protect Rural England) wanted a rail link from the area to Swindon railway station.

It said a rail bridge link "helps to regenerate the town centre, and provides a more direct route to the station."

And it claims a road link “ will generate longer local vehicle journeys through junction 16 between Wichelstowe and West Swindon and encourages car use along the motorway and more congestion, noise and pollution.”

But Gary Sumner, the borough council’s cabinet member in charge of strategic planning said the road was needed to attract people to Swindon, and particularly Wichelstowe.

I guess it depends on who you want to attract?

[ellendune]

This area is on my patch. 

This is a development of 4,500 houses which unless this road is built will have only three ways out none of them at the west end of the development (West Wichel). If this road is not built then a large mixed residential commercial development of West Wichel would only have one access and only to the East. It would essentially be a very large cul de sac! 

Without this road traffic from west wichel would have to go 2 miles east before they could get out into the rest of Swindon or beyond and then this would then have to go out through heavily congested roads in Old Town, Wootton Basset Road or the not quite wide enough B road from Wroughton to Jn 16. The route out to Swindon via Wootton Bassett Road is intended to be bus only in the peak, but this cannot come into force untill another road is built. 

That is why the planning permission does not permit more than 1100 of the 4500 houses in Wichelstowe to be built until this new road is built. 

If the houses cannot be built then developers can continue to run roughshod over the Swindon local plan and get planning permission on unsuitable sites around Swindon.  I am sure that is not what CPRE^▸ (Campaign to Protect Rural England) want!

A station on the main line would be great it could provide a service to the west Swindon, however road access would be difficult from the North so it may have only pedestrian access from Toothill and Freshbrook limiting public transport connectivity.  Even if it could have proper access it could not replace the new road.