East Midlands Hub railway station

East Midlands Hub is a planned new railway station on the Leeds Branch of High Speed 2. It is intended to be located on the existing railway sidings in Toton, situated between Nottingham and Derby.[1] A connection to the Nottingham tram system and new connections to existing rail services are proposed, to link the station to Nottingham, Derby and Leicester railway stations. The station would be located adjacent to the M1 motorway in Nottinghamshire, on the border with Derbyshire.

East Midlands Hub
Toton Sidings, the proposed site of the station.
LocationToton, Broxtowe
England
Coordinates52.9141°N 1.2806°W / 52.9141; -1.2806
Managed byNetwork Rail
Platforms8
History
Opening2032
High Speed 2
Manchester Piccadilly
Leeds
Manchester Interchange
Sheffield
Crewe
Chesterfield
East Midlands Hub
 
Phase 1
Phase 2
 
boundary
 
Phase 1
Phase 2
 
boundary
Birmingham New Street
Birmingham Curzon Street
Birmingham Moor Street
Birmingham International
Birmingham Interchange
Old Oak Common
Euston
pedestrian walkway to
St Pancras International

interchange with National Rail at all stations

    After a sifting process, High Speed Two Limited offered a shortlist of East Midlands options consisting of this site or the expansion of the existing Derby railway station, with the government stating its preference for a station at Toton in January 2013. The Toton plans are supported by Nottingham City Council, whereas Derby City Council would prefer the station to be sited at Derby railway station and Rushcliffe Borough Council support the expansion of the existing East Midlands Parkway station.

    In early October 2014, reports emerged that the preferred location for the East Midlands Hub station had been relocated to Breaston, 2-3 kilometres south-west of Toton. By July 2015 High Speed Two Limited confirmed they were not considering the Breaston site and that their preferred location for the station was at Toton. In November 2016 Phase 2b was approved by the Government.[2][3]

    Background

    In 2009, the Labour Government created High Speed Two (HS2) Limited[4] to examine the prospect of further high-speed rail in the United Kingdom. Later in 2010, the Coalition Government confirmed there would be a terminus in both Leeds and Manchester. In January 2013 the final route was announced[5] with a new station being proposed for Leeds and a new station adjacent to Piccadilly station for the terminus in Manchester. Both Leeds and Manchester were to have junctions to the south of the cities allowing for connections to the East Coast Main Line and the West Coast Main Line respectively. The East Midlands Hub station was announced at the same time and would be on the Leeds branch of HS2, between Birmingham and Sheffield.

    Proposal

    Proposed layout of the East Midlands Hub station at Toton.

    The station would be a newly constructed site making use of existing railway land at Toton sidings. The proposals provide for a total of eight platforms, four of which would be for high-speed rail services and four for local and regional services. Two high-speed through lines would also be provided for services not stopping at the East Midlands Hub. The platforms would be constructed at ground level, with the station entrance and forecourt built at a higher elevation to the east. The site lies on designated green belt land, but is almost entirely surrounded by urban areas. The station is sited on existing railway land. Construction time of the station itself is estimated at five years, with services to be tested in 2031 and running by 2032/33.[6]

    Alternatives

    The government selected the East Midlands Hub station at Toton as it was the "best of all the options HS2 Ltd developed for serving the East Midlands market as a whole". It offers approx. 175 acres (70 ha) including existing companies on the site. The main alternative considered was for an HS2 station to be developed as part of the existing Derby station. High Speed Two Limited stated that this proposal would see a drop in the number of passengers travelling to and from Nottingham (and the wider area) and that £190 million of additional fare revenue could be made from the Toton Hub proposal when compared with a Derby-based HS2 station. In their consultation document, High Speed Two Limited stated that the Toton hub station could attract three-quarters of London-bound passengers from Derby and four-fifths of those from Nottingham.[7]

    In July 2013 Derby City Council put forward plans to route HS2 through Derby via Swadlincote and near to Belper, arguing that the route would be shorter and cheaper to construct. Council leader Cllr Paul Bayliss stated "It's not a secret we've been looking at HS2 having a station in Derby rather in some place called Toton". These plans are opposed by Nottingham City Council, which stated it would prepare a study to describe why Toton would be the best option.[8]

    In addition to the plans to locate an HS2 station in Derby, consideration was given to constructing the line through East Midlands Parkway and upgrading the existing station there. This would result in the line taking a different, more expensive route and High Speed Two Limited concluded that even with the cost of adding new connecting services to Toton factored in, a Toton station would be cheaper to build than an HS2 station at East Midlands Parkway. The green belt designation of the land at East Midlands Parkway was also felt to be a significant planning constraint that the Toton site was not subject to.[9] Despite this, the plan to construct via East Midlands Parkway was supported by two councillors representing the Borough of Rushcliffe, who claimed the East Midlands Parkway site would retain good access to road links in the area whilst benefiting from a connection to the existing rail network.[10] Routing HS2 via East Midlands Parkway was later formally supported by Rushcliffe Borough Council after a meeting in December 2013.[11]

    Relocation to Breaston

    On 8 October 2014, reports emerged that High Speed Two Limited were considering moving the station 2-3 kilometres south-west from Toton into Breaston, Derbyshire, to the west of the M1 motorway. Consideration of the new station location was reported to be driven by reduced costs of the new alignment (as a result of not needing to tunnel the line under East Midlands Airport) and easier connections to the existing rail lines between Derby and Nottingham.[12][13] By July 2015 High Speed Two Limited stated that Breaston was no longer being considered and that the preferred site was at Toton.[14]

    Transport

    East Midlands Hub
    Location of the proposed station in Nottinghamshire.

    Road

    The proposed site sits close to Long Eaton and is approximately one mile (2 km) away from junction 25 of the M1 motorway, where it intersects with the A52 dual-carriageway (Brian Clough Way) that links Derby and Nottingham. To the south of the site and the opposite side of the Trent River is the A453 which leads from Nottingham to East Midlands Airport and to the south-west Via A52 and M1 is the A50 connecting junction 24A of the M1 to Stoke-upon-Trent. The proposed site would include car parking and a new, dedicated connection to the A52.[6] A bus rapid transit is planned for completion prior to the station opening and will, alongside a new Nottingham Express Transit line, connect the station to Derby. New bus services are also planned which will connect additional settlements to the station.[15]

    Cycling

    The proposed site is within 50 metres of the Erewash Valley trail, which connects towns and villages within the Erewash Valley. It is 500 metres from route 6 of the Derby-Nottingham section of the National Cycle Network.

    Rail

    The station will be served by a dedicated rail service connecting it to stations in Derby, Leicester and Nottingham along with other significant stations in the region, including the East Midlands Parkway railway station which is approximately 5 kilometres south of the Toton site. Nottingham Express Transit opened an extension to the park & ride system at Toton in 2015.[6] An extension, planned for completion by 2040, will see the line extended to Derby with an interchange at East Midlands Hub.[15]

    Air

    The proposed site is approximately 10 kilometres north-east of East Midlands Airport.[6] A railway station at the airport is expected to be complete by 2040. This will have direct services to East Midlands Hub and onward to nearby cities.[15]

    References

    1. "Phase Two: Leeds". HS2 Website. High Speed 2 Limited. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
    2. "High Speed Two (HS2) Limited". Companies House.
    3. "HS2: High-speed rail route phase two details announced". BBC News Online. 28 January 2013. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
    4. "East Midlands Hub Station" (PDF). HS2 Consultation Library. High Speed 2 Limited. July 2013. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
    5. "High Speed Rail: Investing in Britain's Future Consultation on the route from the West Midlands to Manchester, Leeds and beyond" (PDF). HS2 Consultation Library. High Speed Two (HS2) Limited. July 2013. p. 71. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
    6. "Derby City Council plans for HS2 rail line station". BBC News Online. 8 July 2013. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
    7. "Options for phase two of the high speed rail network" (PDF). UK.Gov website. High Speed Two (HS2) Limited. 29 March 2012. pp. 183–184. Retrieved 11 December 2013.
    8. Britton, Alexander (13 March 2013). "Councillors want to switch HS2 station from Toton to Parkway". Nottingham Post. Archived from the original on 14 December 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2013.
    9. "Parkway backed for HS2 station". Nottingham Post. 3 December 2013. Archived from the original on 6 December 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2013.
    10. "HS2 hub in East Midlands to be relocated". Rail Technology Magazine. Cognitive Publishing Ltd. 9 October 2014. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
    11. Hess, John (8 October 2014). "Could HS2's East Midlands hub be relocated to Derbyshire?". BBC News Online. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
    12. "HS2 East Midlands hub: Toton only location being considered". BBC News. BBC. 15 July 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
    13. "Access to Toton, the HS2 East Midlands Hub" (PDF). Midlands Connect. 28 May 2020. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
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