POLITICIANS from three parties have issued a plea to build the proposed walkway rail station in Magor “as soon as possible” - and before the four other stations on the south east shortlist.
The walkway station, which would primarily serve pedestrians, cyclists and public transport passengers in Magor and Undy, is the brainchild of a decade-long local campaign.
In 2021, the Welsh Government-backed Burns Commission, set up after the decision to ditch the M4 relief road, recommended Magor get one of five new stations between Cardiff and the Severn Tunnel Junction.
Monmouthshire County Council say the preferred site would be adjacent to the B4245 where it would connect with bus services.
Now, Newport East MS John Griffiths and South Wales East MSs Laura Anne Jones, Delyth Jewell, Peredur Owen Griffiths and Natasha Asghar have all called for the UK Government's spring budget to be a catalyst to transform the plans into action.
They represent Welsh Labour, Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Conservatives in the Senedd, with Ms Asghar also holding the shadow transport minister role.
The project had a previous estimated cost of around £10 million which the Senedd members now expect to be higher as a result of high inflation.
They said the Magor Action Group On Rail (MAGOR) had put a “huge amount of time and efforts into their campaign”.
'Growth'
The MSs say it could cost around £300 million to build all five stations, with an additional price-tag of £400 million to upgrade relief lines on the south Wales stretch.
The “knowledgeable” campaign group, however - which includes engineers and retired railway staff - claim the walkway station could be developed immediately for a fraction of the price.
It could also be the first main line dedicated walkway station to open in more than a century.
In their letter to the rail minister Huw Merriman, and his Labour opposite Stephen Morgan, the MSs said Magor and Undy had seen “significant growth” since the removal of the Severn Bridge tolls in 2018.
“Its location between Bristol and Cardiff mean it is a place where a lot of working people commute back and forth along the busy M4 corridor,” they said.
“The MAGOR group have told us the walkway station at Magor and Undy could be built now and as the first of the five stations because it doesn’t require the upgrade to the relief lines to make it possible.”
They added: “A railway station at Magor would be a quick win for the government in delivering on the Burns’ Commission recommendations and improving rail services in South East Wales.
“With your support we can make it happen!”
While the Welsh Government is response for the running of the railway in Wales, the planning and funding of rail infrastructure mostly remains a matter for the UK Parliament.
A spokesperson for the Department for Transport said: “The Wales Rail Board has already begun work to identify priority proposals for infrastructure in Wales, with more information on specific projects in due course.
“This is on top of a record £2 billion investment by the UK Government into Welsh railways up to 2024, with £1 billion of reallocated HS2 funding to follow - transforming services for rail passengers in Wales for generations to come.”
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will present the Spring Budget to Parliament on Wednesday, March 6.
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