Pressure is mounting for rail infrastructure and service enhancements to alleviate road congestion in the thriving Mersey Dee region, as RHODRI CLARK reports
Busy interchange: panorama of the east end of Chester station. The Virgin and Arriva Trains Wales trains on the left occupy two of the three through platforms, while the Northern Class 150/2 units are in the bays used primarily for Mid Cheshire line services. To their right is platform 7, usually occupied by terminating Merseyrail services. The proposed new platform would be located to the right of platform 7 or in the space to the left of the driving van trailer.
Courtesy Network Rail
The Mersey Dee region is an economic powerhouse which straddles political and administrative boundaries. Comprising North East Wales, West Cheshire and the Wirral, it has 940,000 residents and three Enterprise Zones and generates £22 billion of Gross Value Added per annum. It is home to 700 companies whose annual turnover each exceeds £1 million. Up to 53,000 new homes are planned by 2040.
