One Billion Pound Development Project Surrounding New East Lancashire Freight Rail Terminal Takes A Step Further
Above: Debbie Francis OBE Chair of the LEP Was the Key Speaker at the #AmazingAccrington Business Leaders Meeting
#AmazingAccrington has a very real opportunity to support the development of a new East Lancashire Freight Rail Terminal on the site of the former Huncoat Power Station. Some infrastructure is already in place, and the area is ready for further development. Bringing a freight rail terminal to East Lancashire will tie into levelling up plans, give an economic boost to the region, and create cost, resource and carbon savings for businesses.
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he World Economic Forum estimates e-commerce could rise from 19.2 per cent to 53 per cent of all goods purchased by 2028. The UK government plan for a zero-emissions economy emphasised the importance of dedicated distribution hubs, served by rail. The increase in goods being delivered, plus the urgent need to reduce road traffic, mean that freight rail volume is projected to treble by 2050. In 2019 only 8% of domestic freight was moved by rail.
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LANCASHIRE & NORTH WEST MAGAZINE
The East Lancashire Freight Terminal will be a game changing opportunity for development. The historic power station site has disused freight rail sidings, and the surrounding land is already designated for future freight rail development. It is ideally located in the centre of East Lancashire’s industry, engineering and aerospace, in between the existing rail and road network. Speaking at an #AmazingAccrington business leaders meeting in September, Daniel Cochlin, head of external affairs at Northern Powerhouse, indicated that the future of the East Lancashire Freight Rail Terminal lies with local businesses and business leaders, who right across the region, can pull together to turn the plans into reality, rather than looking at The Northern Powerhouse, the answer is what can businesses do for The Northern Powerhouse. A meeting was held on Friday, 26th November, to discuss how to progress to the next stage, which would be an economic feasibility study. The purpose of this is to establish the facts of the great benefit to the region, and the private sector development opportunity. www.lancmag.com
