The Government has given the go ahead for a multi-million pound upgraded rail link between Nuneaton and Coventry.
Transport Secretary Justine Greening today rubber-stamped a £9.8 million funding bid for the £18 million scheme which will include a new station at Bermuda Park.
Cllr Peter Butlin, Warwickshire County Council’s Portfolio Holder for Highways and Transport, said:
“This is welcome news from the Government and the favourable decision by the Transport Secretary is testament to the hard work put in by everyone behind the bid, and is a shining example of partnership working between Warwickshire, Coventry and Centro.
“The NUCKLE rail link is a key element of our transport strategy and will make a fundamental difference to the economic regeneration of the area.
“Once it is completed, the scheme will give people better access to jobs and open up new possibilities for leisure and services.
“In the future, we will see even more growth in the corridor between Nuneaton and Coventry, and this scheme will help to reduce traffic congestion and deliver more reliable trains between the two destinations.”
NUCKLE will mean an increase in the frequency of services between Nuneaton and Coventry of two car trains every 30 minutes, new stations at Bermuda Park and Coventry Arena, and longer platforms at Bedworth station.
Excellent news. I have used this line many times in mkaing business business trips to Reading, Southampton and Bournemouth by changing at Coventry. This should shorten journey times for the future. Well done.
Graham Nalty
I use the Coventry — Nuneaton link to avoid Birmingham when travelling between Oxford and Leicester. Doubling the length and frequency of trains on this link is a good start.
It will be better still if Kenilworth station is reopened and Coventry — Nuneaton trains are extended to Leamington Spa. Two trains an hour on this link would complement CrossCountry’s two trains an hour between the Solent, the Midlands and the North — all of which serve Leamington, but only half of which serve Coventry.
The beauty of NUCKLE is that it would be both a local line for that part of Warwickshire and a strategic link for people on much longer journeys. I hope Warwickshire County Council is as committed to the Kenilworth and Leamington phase of the project as it is to improvements between Coventry and Nuneaton.