Plans to bring back mainline train services to Rotherham are taking a step forward with Rotherham Council looking to buy land which could form a suitable location for the station.
Rotherham Council’s Cabinet members will be asked this month for approval to start negotiations to buy properties, located in the Parkgate area.
Cabinet will also be asked for permission to investigate the potential use of powers for a Compulsory Purchase or Transport and Works Act orders to acquire the necessary land, although negotiation remains the preferred option.
Rotherham Council and South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority have already drawn up proposals to return mainline train services to the borough for the first time since the 1980s.
If successful, the proposals would see new direct services into York and Birmingham, with faster services to Leeds, Sheffield, and Doncaster than currently offered.
Rotherham Council’s Cabinet Member for Jobs and the Local Economy Cllr Denise Lelliott said: “Taken together with a new tram train stop, a new mainline station would radically improve the town’s connectivity, significantly improving local, regional and national rail connections for residents and businesses, offering greater access to employment, whilst helping to grow local businesses.”
Funding to acquire the properties has been secured by Rotherham Council through the Government’s Towns Fund. The Council has also secured funding to draw up an outline business case to progress the proposal.
Preparation of the masterplan is underway and focuses on the station, the location of facilities and key connections to the tram train and beyond. It also sets out a longer-term vision for the surrounding area in order to capitalise on the benefits that significantly improved connectivity to the national rail network could bring to the town.
The masterplan has also identified a preferred location for the station building and a layout for supporting facilities including car parking, a pick up/drop off area and space to accommodate rail replacement bus services.
