A £1.5 million investment by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has given a big boost to plans to build a new station in Liverpool’s Baltic Triangle area.
Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram has pledged to build a new station on the site of the former St James station, which closed in 1917, in one of the fastest growing areas of the city, near to the former Cains Brewery.
Proposals for the station on the Merseyrail network are a step closer thanks to two new developments – an agreement with Network Rail, worth £1.2 million, to start the next stage of the design process, and the purchase of a plot of land adjacent to the railway cutting off Stanhope Street for £300,000, protecting a potential future site for the new station ticket office building.
Liverpool’s Baltic Triangle area has undergone huge redevelopment in recent years. It is home to a diverse range of over 350 creative and digital industries, with over 1,000 apartments built since 2012 and future plans for at least 3,000 more, alongside the various popular creative and leisure facilities that have opened.
Giving commuters and leisure visitors to the area a direct connection to the Merseyrail network would help to reduce car journeys to the area, contributing towards reducing traffic congestion and aspirations to improve air quality across the city region.
Funding for the land purchase and the next design stage has come from the £175 million Transforming Cities Fund, which was announced at the September 2019 Combined Authority meeting. An additional application for funding has also been made for the station in the latest round of New Stations Fund.
The station also forms part of the Liverpool City Region Long Term Rail Strategy, a 30-year plan, which was updated in 2018.
Speaking about this latest investment for the scheme, Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said: “I’m working to deliver a London-style transport system across the city region that is quick, affordable and easy to use, as well as expanding our network so our communities can be better connected.
“The Baltic Triangle has undergone a radical transformation over the past decade and has become a fantastic place for people to live, work and enjoy themselves.
“While Coronavirus continues to have a huge impact on everyday life, I am determined to keep investing in our region’s economic recovery and I remain ambitious for our future. Today we’ve taken another step towards delivering a new station for the Baltic, which will help connect people with jobs, opportunities and the wider city region.”
