East West Railway Company (EWR Co) has invited community representatives from every parish, ward and electoral division along the potential route of East West Rail to join regular discussions about the much-needed new transport connection.
The groups, which will continue throughout the planning, building and running of the new railway, are being set up at this early stage so the project can improve and benefit from collaboration with communities, who will see a greener, quicker and more affordable way to travel across the region.
Almost 350 Ward and County Councillors and over 200 Town and Parish Councils between Oxford and Cambridge have been invited to represent their local communities at these groups. There will be 17 location-specific discussion groups in total along the East West Rail route with meetings set to take place every three months.
OPPORTUNITIES
Simon Blanchflower CBE, Chief Executive at East West Railway Company said: “The right transport will open up so many opportunities for people – maybe they’re thinking about applying for a new job, moving to a new home, or just seeing more of what this beautiful region has to offer. I’m delighted to see these groups being set up: we’re indebted to community representatives who take the time to share their thoughts and experience with us, so we have as much information as possible to create what they and their neighbours need.
“These groups offer an opportunity for local representatives to have honest discussions with our team at regular intervals, during and outside of formal consultations. Most importantly, it will give our team the chance to really listen to the things that are important to local communities. We know issues such as rights of way, embankments and their impact on the landscape, and how we might minimise any noise that could come from the new railway are really critical and we’ll keep listening and working with local representatives to make sure any disruption to their communities is justified and kept to a minimum.”
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The first meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 9, for representatives of Huntingdonshire and parts of South Cambridgeshire. Initial meetings will be held virtually and will shape the terms of reference for the groups and consider key local topics for future discussions. It is likely that the lifting of Covid restrictions will allow face-to-face meetings to take place at locations along the EWR route in the future if people feel comfortable doing so.
Communities can check who is representing them locally by visiting our website. Alternatively, people can write to the EWR Co team at Contact@eastwestrail.co.uk for more information.
Once the first meetings have taken place, agendas, minutes and presentation materials will be available in a new space on the East West Rail Community Hub.
EWR Co will publish plans for wider community engagement in the near future.
