GREENFIELD railway station will see new footbridges installed over the track, providing much needed accessibility.
And images showing how it will look as part of a multi-billion pound rail project have been released.
Bosses at the Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU) scheme, which will see 70 miles of track from Manchester to York electrified, have unveiled what to expect ahead of the launch of a public consultation.
According to the image, one new bridge will be accessed by pedestrians from the top of the hill of Shaw Hall Bank Road.
While another further along the extended platform will provide much-needed access to the direction of Huddersfield via a lift that can be boarded from the Manchester-bound side.
The extended areas on each track will give space for longer services to use the station, which would allow more seats.
TRU work in Saddleworth has already reached a stumbling block over what to do with the Uppermill level crossing known as Moorgate Halt.
The public consultation will also present further details on the installation of overhead line equipment on the iconic Uppermill Viaduct, also known as Saddleworth Viaduct.
TRU chiefs will launch it, taking in the line from Stalybridge to Diggle, on Monday, September 16 until Friday, October 25.
A virtual consultation room and feedback form will open on 16 September, when a website goes live at www.networkrail.co.uk/stalybridgetodiggle.
There will also be an in-person event at Saddleworth Rangers ARLFC on Tuesday, September 19, from 3pm until 8pm.
Following the consultation process, TRU will consider all the feedback received from the local community and other stakeholders.
A Transport and Works Act Order application will then be submitted to the Secretary of State in Summer 2025.
Mark Ashton, TRU Sponsor said: “The TRU Stalybridge to Diggle (Saddleworth) public consultation is the opportunity for the public to hear about our exciting plans for the area, which includes improved, more accessible stations at Mossley and Greenfield for the first time in the route’s history.
“We want to bring the people of Stalybridge, Heyrod, Mossley, Greenfield, Uppermill and Diggle with us on this journey.
“I urge the local community and businesses to look at our plans through our virtual consultation room or at the in-person events and let us know their thoughts through our feedback form.”
Wow, that all looks great and those artists impressions are almost as good as ones we we shown of the promised new regeneration at say Mumps; that now looks more like an old scrap yard than anything else.
Meanwhile back on planet Earth, “Both the government and Network rail have refused to say what’s happened to £65 million of funding that was allocated to improve access at rail stations over the last 5 years but was never spent.”
If memory serves me correctly, there is still an old underpass below the tracks that was filled in. It was prone to flooding, but I wonder if digging it out and putting in better drainage might have been a cheaper option?
Quite possibly; but this is exactly same company that still wants to close the Moorgate Halt level crossing because or so they claim they can’t afford to maintain it safely or provide an inexpensive footbridge to keep the public right of way open.
As for the public consultation, well we all know what those are actually worth in practice.