Thorpe Park Rail Station

Background

We are developing plans to build a new rail station on the existing Leeds to York section of the Trans-Pennine railway line - between Cross Gates and Garforth Stations. The station would sit within the wider development at Thorpe Park which is a mixed-use office, commercial and residential area. The site would also be near to the southern end of the East Leeds Orbital Route (ELOR).

Thorpe Park Rail Station received Outline Business Case approval in October 2021. The station is currently in the design phase and working towards Full Business Case. This is due to be completed and submitted to our assurance panel in Spring/Summer 2024. Planning consent will be sought early 2024, with the delivery phase expected to begin in Summer 2024.

The first phase of public engagement regarding this station took place 2 July - 3 August 2018 and a report was produced analysing the feedback we received during this period.

The next phase of public consultation will be conducted as part of the planning process for the new station. This is planned for late 2023 / early 2024. If you haven’t done so already, we encourage you to sign-up to updates on Your Voice to be kept informed of future activity.

For information about the Thorpe Park rail station proposal, and what we engaged the public on in summer 2018, please visit an archived copy of the engagement website.

Project Objectives and Benefits

Improving the rail network is an important part of the strategy that aims to improve journeys for existing passengers, as well as attracting new users. With significant development and investment across the city, the rail network must connect people to where they want to go. It is also important to make sure Leeds is ready to maximise the benefits and future opportunities of Northern Powerhouse Rail. The station will also help to reduce road congestion, through reduced road journeys.

Thorpe Park Rail Station proposals have the following objectives and benefits:

• Serve the established Thorpe Park development including business park, leisure and retail facilities, providing improved transport links for employees and visitors
• Connecting people to jobs in existing and new developments around the area
• Provide an accessible station for all users
• Better rail service for local demand (with park and ride for commuters)
• Encourage more people to travel by public transport
• Improve rail access for local residents in the East Leeds area
• Form part of wider connectivity for new transport infrastructure across the East Leeds Extension, offering integrated public transport for existing and new residents
• Improve air quality and reduce carbon emissions by taking cars off the road
• Provide station parking for commuters
• Help employers have access to a wider labour network by creating a better connection to the city centre, and reducing journey times

What is proposed?

The current design proposal for the station includes:

• Two platforms
• Footbridge
• Ticket machines and covered seating area
• Lift access on both platforms to the footbridge
• Step free access and egress onto both platforms
• Cycle lane and cycle storage
• Bus drop off points
• Rail services with a minimum of two trains per hour
• Car park with blue badge parking spaces and electric vehicle charging points
• Refuge area on platform 1

Climate Emergency

Since the previous engagement, the Combined Authority and Leeds City Council have declared a climate emergency. Tackling the climate emergency is one of the Combined Authority’s four strategic priorities and with our partners, the Combined Authority has set a target to create a net zero carbon Leeds City Region by 2038.

Thorpe Park Rail Station seeks to meet the current demand for sustainable travel to and from the Thorpe Park development. The station will help ease current congestion and associated air quality issues by improving access by public transport, by encouraging fewer people to drive to the area. The station will help to connect new residential areas in the East Leeds Extension and at Thorpe Park to local urban centres such as Leeds and Bradford for typically commuting and leisure purposes. Another aim of the station is to increase sustainable travel, catering for longer distances, typically business trips to urban centres such as York and Manchester with the provision of the park and ride facilities which encourage transfer to rail and reduce car vehicle kilometres driven. The station will help to connect the existing and new office, leisure and retail developments at Thorpe Park to employees and customers throughout West Yorkshire.

The proposal will be informed by the Combined Authority’s Carbon Impact Audit, as will all of the Combined Authority’s transport infrastructure and economic regeneration projects.

Funding and Approvals

The station is currently being funded by the West Yorkshire-plus Transport Fund. The project will also utilise New Stations Fund funding in the future. The Transport Fund is targeted at enabling key development areas and will help to create about 20,000 new jobs. A number of strategic transport projects will be delivered to facilitate growth identified in the Strategic Economic Plan (SEP). For further information on the West Yorkshire-plus Transport Fund, visit the Combined Authority's Annual Meeting page.

The delivery of the station beyond the Full Business Case is subject to the relevant approvals, as defined in the Leeds City Region Assurance Framework.

Next Steps

Thorpe Park Rail Station is currently working towards Full Business Case. In early 2024, the project will go out to a public consultation where members of the public can view the current proposals and comment on the project; this will be fed back to the project team and will help to inform the station’s proposals and development.

If you would like to keep informed of the project, please register here to be a part of Your Voice.

Please contact us if you would like to receive this information in an alternative format.