Residents contacted us recently regarding a news story in the Courier about possible future infrastructure works that might see Network Rail require, in a worst case scenarios, require up to 207m in length of land within Magdalen Green with a maximum width of 1.3m. This would be to create a new passing loop to “enable an increase in the number of freight paths and passenger services”.
You can read the Courier item from earlier this month at :
We contacted the City Council planning team to get further information and the Principal Planning Officer has updated us as follows :
"We have been engaged in pre-application discussions with Network Rail as they assemble a programme of enhancement works on the railway line of the Glasgow to Aberdeen route.
Many of the works are likely to be ‘permitted development’, however we anticipate that planning applications may be required for works that involve built heritage or lie outside the land ownership of Network Rail.
This is a large and complex project and the form and content of the works and need for planning permission is still to be determined. To support that process Network Rail has submitted a request for a screening opinion in relation to the Environmental Impact Assessment procedures. The purpose of this is to identify any potentially significant environmental impacts.
From this I understand that the worst case scenario is that they may need to widen the rail corridor at Magdalen Green. They have indicated that this may be by up to 1.3 metres over a 200 metre long stretch of the line. They are however hopeful that the need for this can be removed as the design progresses."
We obviously hope that any works will be contained on the existing Network Rail land and not impact on Magdalen Green and that any impact on the Green is 'designed out' when detailed proposals come forward. However, we have made the point to the council that if any ground is required, it would make more sense to take that from the south side at the playing fields west of Barnetts Motor Group rather than from the Green.
We have also sought assurances that detailed design work and further consultation on the proposed replacement footbridge proceeds only once the City Council is absolutely sure that these Network Rail proposals would not impact on the footbridge project.