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Wixams Station MML - Does anyone know anything?

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richieb1971

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Wixams is a housing estate built over the past 5-10 years. One of the main attractions was a new station a few miles south of Bedford Midland.

However, until this time there is no news about it being built. After driving past the planned site I noticed houses very close to the line. So close that putting a station and car park in the vicinity would make it impossible to instate.

http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/...spite-broken/story-26095911-detail/story.html
 
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Andyjs247

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Wixams is a housing estate built over the past 5-10 years. One of the main attractions was a new station a few miles south of Bedford Midland.

However, until this time there is no news about it being built. After driving past the planned site I noticed houses very close to the line. So close that putting a station and car park in the vicinity would make it impossible to instate.

http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/...spite-broken/story-26095911-detail/story.html

I don't know the area well but I thought Wixams station was something planned for East-West Rail rather than MML? The two lines do run roughly parallel south of Bedford for a little way. I guess it also depends on how the central section will link up between Bletchley and Cambridge.
 

asylumxl

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I don't know anything, but as harsh as it sounds, I think the residents were rather naive to think a station could be built.

It would involve a lot of work at great expense. For one, the lines would need to be slewed to make space for an island platform. I imagine TL and EMT would not be too chuffed with the disruption caused by such work...
 

richieb1971

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I don't know the area well but I thought Wixams station was something planned for East-West Rail rather than MML? The two lines do run roughly parallel south of Bedford for a little way. I guess it also depends on how the central section will link up between Bletchley and Cambridge.

That is not true. The EW rail consortium wanted to piggy back a multi tier station there. But if the original plans aren't going ahead there is no chance the EW rail station will be supported either.

Any road, the original plans for the station can't be realized now. There are show homes literally 100 ft from the track where the station is supposed to be.

I have never seen a scenario play out where a station is proposed as a selling point and then not realized. Its a bit sad really that anyone could do this in this day and age. The Wixams home website still sports a picture of two of the proposed station which is due to open in 2017 according to its main webpage.
 

Trainfan344

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I don't know anything, but as harsh as it sounds, I think the residents were rather naive to think a station could be built.

It would involve a lot of work at great expense. For one, the lines would need to be slewed to make space for an island platform. I imagine TL and EMT would not be too chuffed with the disruption caused by such work...

I would have thought the station be built with the platforms on the outer edge of the formation?
 

richieb1971

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That is a good point. Looking at Google maps all 4 tracks are equally parallel along that part of the track.
 

John Webb

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Wixams is just west of the A6 and lies at the east end of an area that was a former ordnance factory in WW2, with access to extensive factory sidings controlled by a new Wilshampstead signal box. Part of the area became an industrial estate in more recent years and the railway connection removed.

The nearest station is Kempston Hardwick on the Bedford - Bletchley line, about 2 miles away as the crow flies, but over twice that by the current road network.

Bearing in find the flat nature of the land around there, and the former use of the railway by the ordnance factory, I would have thought there was the potential for a station on at least the slow lines, which are on the estate's side of the St Pancras-Bedford line, for a new station to be built alongside the present line and then connected in at each end when complete. (I can't see on current mapping any housing yet built at the west end of the area, but that may be out of date, of course!)
 
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edwin_m

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If space is available it wouldn't be too difficult to build new Slow lines just off the east side of the formation, then slew across in a weekend possession during which the Fasts might still be able to operate, perhaps for diesels only in view of the headspan OLE. If there was a bit less space and the new Down Slow overlapped the old Up Slow or the OLE supports then it could be done one track at a time. Platforms could then be built east of the new Up Slow, between the Down Slow and the Up Fast, and west of the Down Fast. Even simpler would be just to move the Up Slow and build an island platform between the Slows, if no Fast line platforms were required.
 

richieb1971

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On the Ampthill side of the railway bridge there are show homes about 10-15 car lengths on the left hand side. The maps are out of date because the homes were only built in the last 3 months.

Considering the size of the project based on words above, I can't see it happening. It would disrupt services to no end, gantries would need to be re-positioned and there isn't any obvious detours the trains can take unless they go up the branch and to Euston.

I did however see a double decker bus today going from Bedford to Flitwick with a sign stating "train bus" or something to that nature. So something must be happening today along that stretch of the line.
 

westcoaster

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On the Ampthill side of the railway bridge there are show homes about 10-15 car lengths on the left hand side. The maps are out of date because the homes were only built in the last 3 months.

Considering the size of the project based on words above, I can't see it happening. It would disrupt services to no end, gantries would need to be re-positioned and there isn't any obvious detours the trains can take unless they go up the branch and to Euston.

I did however see a double decker bus today going from Bedford to Flitwick with a sign stating "train bus" or something to that nature. So something must be happening today along that stretch of the line.

Replacement buses bedford to flitwick until 0830.

Doubt they will build a station at wixhams, the one for the proposed Eco park in the old brick pits hit the buffers also. As you say new homes have sprung up at chimney corner with more being built towards the railway line.
 

DarloRich

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The station at Wixhams is part of the planning permission for the development, it is one of Bedfordshire County Councils key transport deliverables and is covered by a section 106 agreement

(follow this link: http://www.bedford.gov.uk/environme..._page/major_planning_applications/wixams.aspx and download both section 106 agreements and looks at pages 71 -77 & 106 - 108 - i dont know how to link to pdf documents)

The problem is that the station and many of the other amenities are late, although the school has been built. Only one of the five villages has been built and the scheme is about 3 years late.

However work on the residential side of things has picked up so i guess the developers are putting the amenities works off as long as they can. I think it will happen just later than expected. I have seen suggestions of 2017 but there are also rumblings about funding issues so who knows!
 

Blamethrower

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I didn't move to Wixams for this very reason. Promising a new station really is fanciful, and as aylumxl says, it is rather naive of them to think that this can be achieved.

I live on a different new estate, about a mile from Bedford Midland.

Lets be honest, all new build buyers are promised the earth yet receive only a fraction of those new buildings, amenities and facilities. We were lucky in that there was already a doctors surgery, however, Wixams have a shop, we don't (for 2 miles), we are about 2 years behind schedule and some builders just appear to be generally procrastinating.

They've even tried to build more houses than they originally planned (ruining the view that some would've had) but this has been stopped, we have the worst internet connection ever and it doesn't look as if it's going to improve either.

New build estates, take em with a pinch of salt now that prices are rising again
 

pitdiver

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According to BBC 3 Counties Radio this morning "Wixams Station probably won't happen". There's going to be a lot of disappointed people who were hoping to buy a house near a local station.

From your Rural Bedfordshire Correspondent
 

DarloRich

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According to BBC 3 Counties Radio this morning "Wixams Station probably won't happen". There's going to be a lot of disappointed people who were hoping to buy a house near a local station.

From your Rural Bedfordshire Correspondent

hmmmmmmmmmmmm frustrating! <(
 

richieb1971

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Well after looking at some facts its pretty hard to do. The track is raised, you need to build platforms on the slow lines. Its bad enough building a platform on one slow line but the other one would be between the fast and slow lines and there just isn't enough room anywhere along there.

You could build one on the vale line if that wasn't too far to walk/cycle. Or just rename Kempston Hardwick to Wixams lol.

The most realistic chance of getting anything "built" is if the EWR bypasses Bedford completely, under passes the MML and they decide to underpass with a station. The negative of that is that you would need to travel East or West before travelling north or south. I would imagine if they had a upper lower tier station there they might put the cash in for a island platform to serve Bedford. Which would be the mostly used platform I Think.
 
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trainmania100

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Would be nice if I had a railway line at the back of my house like my mate does
Next time I move house that will be my top priority
 

Blamethrower

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2 people where I work bought houses there on the premise that a station would be built there. I also considered it but concluded that this would never happen, especially when you consider the distance from Wixams to the railway. Wixams is a massive site and so anyone catching a train from there would either have to cycle or drive from their part of the village anyway, making it pointless.

I live on a new estate which is closer to Bedford Midland than Wixams would be to their proposed station.

Don't ever believe what developers tell you, they just need people to move in asap
 
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