Stocksbridge to Sheffield passenger service
The Department for Transport today announced £500m of funding to kickstart the reopening of rail routes that have been closed for decades.
This initiative offers us a real opportunity to improve transport connections for our community.
In December 2019, Rail Minister Chris Heaton Harris MP visited Stocksbridge and announced that the Stocksbridge to Sheffield line is one of the routes that the Government would like to see re-opened. And last week I met with representatives from Sheffield City Region and the Don Valley Railway to look at possible sites for a passenger train station in Stocksbridge. Currently, a freight train travels from Stocksbridge to Sheffield twice a day along what used to be a passenger line. The Don Valley Railway group have been campaigning for over ten years to see this line re-instated as a passenger service - I am therefore delighted that this the Government has taken such an interest in this important local infrastructure project.
The A6102 between Stocksbridge and Sheffield is a busy road, and frequent users will know that traffic congestion and poor air quality in Hillsborough are significant issues for those coming into the North of Sheffield. With more housing being built, and more being planned for the Upper Don Valley, congestion will only increase. If we are to connect local communities with jobs, training and services, and at the same time reduce our use of fossil fuels, we have to find viable alternatives to private cars – and this project does just that.
I’m looking forward to working with local people, the Department for Transport and Sheffield City Region to make sure this important passenger service is reopened.
