COVENTRY Citizens Party leader Cameron Baxter said he was ‘surprised and disappointed’ by proposals for two new rail stations in the city.
Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) and the West Midlands Rail Executive (WMRE) announced last week they would be exploring the feasibility and business cases for five new stations across the region, including Coventry East (Binley) and Foleshill.
The proposed Coventry East (Binley) station would be on the main line between Coventry and Rugby, while a potential Foleshill station would operate on the Coventry-Nuneaton line.
But Mr Baxter said he feared any plans for a new station at Coundon Road had been dropped and raised concerns about the proposed Foleshill station.
Mr Baxter added: “A new station in Foleshill arguably makes little sense because the council has previously said that congestion in Foleshill is caused by through-traffic heading towards the A444.”
The Citizens’ Party has suggested opening a new station on Bedworth Road in Longford instead.
They claim it is better situated to function as a park-and-ride site to connect to the CBS Arena and A444, help reduce traffic through Foleshill and support plans for direct rail services between Coventry, Leicester and Nottingham.
Coundon Road station originally closed in 1965, but in 2019 Coventry Conservatives and West Midlands Mayor Andy Street began calls to reopen along with developing a new station at Binley.
Labour councillors then supported the proposals as well as suggesting a new station in Foleshill.
Coventry Conservatives leader Coun Gary Ridley said: “If we’re serious about getting people to ditch the car, a transition from road to rail must be part of the solution.
“There are currently no train stations between Coventry and Rugby which leaves a huge section of the population without easy access to a railway station.
“It’s really encouraging to hear at least two of the three station ideas seem to have taken a step forward and shows what can be achieved when politicians adopt a bipartisan approach in the best interests of Coventry.”
A West Midlands Combined Authority spokesperson said: “The New Stations Study included an assessment of Coundon Road station alongside Foleshill, Coventry East and Coventry South stations.
“This assessment looked at a number of different criteria in order to identify which stations have the strongest case for further work at this stage – including which ones are most likely to attract future funding.
“This assessment identified that both Foleshill and Coventry East stations had quite strong cases for undertaking more development work, while Coundon Road was assessed as having not as strong a case – primarily due to its proximity to the city centre meaning that its catchment area overlaps with Coventry station.
“So whilst we remain confident that Coundon Road can still happen, we must prioritise which projects we do first.
“That’s why – for the time being – we’ve decided to concentrate on those stations that are currently best placed to draw in further funding.
“We will of course continue to keep all matters under review should circumstances change.”
