Cheadle station project advances

Plans for a railway station in the Stockport suburb have gone to public consultation, with the intention to build on the existing staff car park at BMI The Alexandra Hospital.

A railway station was the chief element of Stockport’s Towns Fund bid for Cheadle, a part of the borough that lacks such a link.

The plan is to build the station to the north of the village centre, with new pedestrian, cycle and vehicle access to the B5095 Manchester Road.

A single-platform station is proposed for a halt on the Manchester/Chester Mid-Cheshire line, with a minimum of one service per hour in each direction – this would link Cheadle to Altrincham and Stockport’s main station along with those cities.

Around 100 parking spaces will be included, along with EV charging points.

Consultation is now open and runs until 7 November.

Confirmed in March’s Budget, Cheadle’s bid secured £13.9m from the £3.6bn Towns Fund, having sought the maximum £25m. Stockport Council and the Cheadle Towns Fund Board had been putting the case together since 2019, building a bid based on improving connectivity – walking and cycling infrastructure was also mapped out.

Economic development consultancy SQW worked with the team as lead consultant, while rail specialist Pell Frischmann was brought in to develop the business case for the rail connection as the bid was finalised in autumn 2020.

Credit: consultation document CGIs provided by Pell Frischmann