Time to rethink closure of Waterbeach village station?

Rail campaigners are asking whether it is time to rethink the closure of Waterbeach village train station when it is relocated to Waterbeach new town.

The station is set to move to serve a new housing development of up to 11,000 homes, leaving villagers without a rail connection.

But independent campaign group Railfuture is suggesting that funding currently allocated for demolition of the site would be put to better use creating a “turnback” platform at Waterbeach new town, which would allow trains to start and end their journeys at the original village station.

Waterbeach villagers have also signalled their dismay about the closure in a new survey which shows 72 per cent of those polled would like to see the current station remain open.

James Hedges, author of the survey, said: “The majority opinion is one of opposition to these proposals. Any further work to fulfil these proposals must be carried out in a significantly more transparent manner than everything that has gone before and must involve the residents who will bear the impact of them.

“An undercurrent of discontent has been present ever since the proposals were first put forward and any opposition to them has seemingly been ignored. However, now that the strength of public opinion has been clearly assessed, albeit with only the sample size of this questionnaire, there must be a co-ordinated effort from Waterbeach residents to ensure that their voices are heard and that their quality of life is not unduly impacted as a result of the loss of their train station.

“I implore those in the decision-making process to carefully consider the analysis presented here and to engage in a discussion of these results to ensure that the residents of Waterbeach have a say in a matter that affects them.”

The Greater Cambridge Partnership agreed to take on the project to relocate Waterbeach Station in June last year.

At the time the GCP said the scheme was expected to cost £37million to complete, but accepted there was a risk these costs could increase.

Building a new railway station in Waterbeach was set as a condition of South Cambridgeshire District Council’s approval of plans by developers RLW to build 4,500 homes as part of the Waterbeach new town, which together with Urban & Civic’s development could total 11,000 homes.

The project was originally expected to be led and funded by developers, but the GCP was told in 2022 that this was no longer considered to be viable. It agreed to take on the project to “unlock” the Waterbeach new town housing, and the developer RLW Estates proposed to contribute £17m towards the cost of relocating the station. In January this year the GCP announced that the station’s opening date had been delayed but it was still expected to open in 2025.

Writing in the Railfuture campaign group’s newsletter, Rail East, Peter Wakefield suggested a way the current Waterbeach village station could be saved, keeping the link for villages.

He said: “Should the funding allocated for its demolition be used instead for the creation of the third platform (‘turnback’) at Waterbeach New, allowing the Thameslink service… to start and finish at the new station on its journeys to / from all stations to Potters Bar – calling at Waterbeach village station at the start and end of its journey?

“This would free up platforms at Cambridge station and provide an invaluable cross Cambridge city link out to Royston. (All other longer distance services from King’s Lynn should call only at the new station.)

“There is much unhappiness amongst Waterbeach village residents about their perceived loss of mobility created by, from their point of view, this unwanted closure. Time for a rethink?”

A spokesperson for the GCP said: “The relocation of Waterbeach Station is required to unlock Waterbeach New Town, and so our executive board agreed in 2022 to take on the responsibility for the project.

“We are working with Network Rail and partners to deliver the station and we expect to bring a report to our joint assembly and executive board in the autumn to agree the next steps.

“Network Rail, as the owner and manager of the railway network, would be responsible for taking any decision on creating a ‘turnback’ and specifying train stopping patterns.”