* Ruabon rail station.
Campaigners for
improvements at Ruabon Station have repeated their calls for the UK Government
to step up with funding.
The Welsh Labour Government wants lifts installed at Ruabon
to help people with mobility issues, families with young children and commuters
carrying heavy luggage move between platforms, but they say the UK Government refuses to
contribute to the costs – even though the work comes under Westminster’s remit.
Local Member of the Senedd Ken Skates raised the issue in
the Senedd this week and was told the Welsh Government is ‘doing everything we
can at our end’.
Addressing Deputy Minister Lee Waters, who is responsible
for transport in Wales, the Clwyd South MS asked: “Will the Minister provide an
update on plans to improve Ruabon Station?”
Mr Waters responded: "Yes. Thank you to Ken Skates, who
has been a consistent champion of Ruabon Station. We agree it has great
potential, serving a wide area and is the rail gateway to the World Heritage
Site at Pontcysyllte. We continue to press the UK Government for funding of the
delivery of a new access-for-all bridge at the station.”
While transport is devolved to Wales, responsibility for
station infrastructure remains with the UK Government. Since devolution, Wales
has received less than 2% of the £100bn+ the UK Government has spent on
improvements – despite having 5% of the population and 11% of the track miles.
Coupled with the lack of consequential funding to Wales
despite the billions spent in England on HS2, the lack of investment from
Westminster has been dubbed ‘The Great Welsh Train Robbery’.
Mr Skates said campaigners for the improvements at Ruabon
were left disappointed once again when, in November, the UK Government
announced funding for other Welsh stations.
Responding to the Deputy Minister this week, he continued:
“As you know, the Welsh Government has worked incredibly hard to try to get the
improvements necessary at Ruabon Station. But back in November, there was the
announcement of six stations in Wales that will receive upgrades, and Ruabon
was not amongst them.
“Could you identify the reasons why you believe Ruabon
Station has not yet benefited from the upgrades that so many passengers require
of the station? Is it a problem with Network Rail or UK Government? Because I
do understand that Transport for Wales has been pretty consistent in supporting
the necessary works.”
Mr Waters said: “I can confirm that Ruabon Station is one of
our top priorities for delivery in Wales through the UK Government's Access for
All scheme. Transport for Wales are working closely with Network Rail on that,
and a final outline design is due at the end of March. So, I think we're doing
everything we can at our end.
“A new accessible bridge at Ruabon would make a significant
difference there, but we can only take it forward if the UK Government funds
it. Rail is not devolved to Wales, it is a UK responsibility, and I'm bound to
ask what are all those Tory MPs in north Wales doing if they can't deliver
funding for a modest investment like this.”
Welsh Ministers had previously asked the UK Department for
Transport to urgently prioritise work at Ruabon – with First Minister Mark
Drakeford a keen supporter of the plans.
But the final say will come down to the UK Government.
The Welsh Government’s first bid for funding was a
replacement bridge with lifts, and the second for a reduced cost alternative
which would see lifts fitted to the existing footbridge. Both were rejected.
Mr Skates and Ruabon councillor Dana Davies have worked
alongside the Friends of Ruabon for years to campaign for improved access at
the station. In 2017, former Clwyd South MP Susan Elan Jones presented a
petition to Parliament calling for action from the UK Government.
In a further attempt to incentivise the UK Government to
invest in Welsh stations, including Ruabon, the Welsh Government even offered
to match-fund vital upgrades.
Cllr Davies said: “It’s well documented that the Welsh
Government has previously put money on the table for this long-awaited work,
even though it’s not a devolved area. The Friends of Ruabon – and many other
local people – have been frustrated and extremely disappointed by the lack of
progress and numerous false dawns.
“Some years ago, when the Welsh Government first committed
to funding half of the project, we celebrated – we thought it was a done deal. We
didn’t think there was any way the UK Government would refuse to fund half the
cost of a project it should be paying for in full.”
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