14.06.16
Proposals for new West Midlands freight hub open to public consultation
A new rail freight hub with direct access to the West Coast Main Line could be built near Featherstone in Staffordshire.
Consortium Four Ashes are holding consultation events on design plans for the West Midlands Interchange, which will be built on 615 acres of land west of junction 12 of the M6.
The planned development, which Four Ashes hopes will create 8,500 jobs, will feature warehouses for the storage, processing and movement of goods for manufacturers, retailers and consumers.
Peter Frost, managing director of Four Ashes, said: “It's the type of project that the region's businesses and economic organisations have said they urgently need and it is supported by a national government policy to encourage freight movements off the roads and onto rail.”
The consultation events will be held in the local area on 30 June, 8 July and 9 July.
A planning development application for the project, which is being funded by property developer the Grosvenor Group, will be submitted in autumn 2017, with the final decision being made by the government rather than South Staffordshire council.
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