Free WiFi for Dorridge station

FREE WiFi is to be installed at Dorridge train station, Chiltern Railways has announced.

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Train time consultation closes next week

A CONSULTATION on proposed train times for Chiltern Railway services will close on Friday. Click here for details. Leave your comments below.

Bid to send station back to sixties

THE newly-formed Friends of Dorridge Station want to return the booking hall to its 1960s state, The Solihull Observer reports.

"Negative" station parking approved

PLANS to put a new deck of parking at Solihull station were approved last night, despite planners saying it would give a "negative" view of the town.

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Approve "negative" station parking, report says

A NEW deck of parking at Solihull station should be allowed despite giving a “negative” of the town impression to visitors, a council report says.

A visualisation of the new car park by Chiltern Railways.

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Updated: plan for extra Solihull station parking

A PLAN has been submitted to add an extra deck of parking to the car park at Solihull train station.

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Trains to be disrupted for longer

TRAINS will be disrupted from Dorridge until September after railways bosses failed to meet a deadline for major improvement works.

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Train journeys to be slashed

TRAIN journey times from Solihull to London will be slashed by 25 minutes, Chiltern Railways has said.

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Delays after man hit by train

TRAINS between Dorridge and Solihull are delayed after a person was hit by a train at Solihull, train firm London Midland said today.

250mph trains to run past Balsall Common

A 250mph high speed train line will run across the top of Balsall Common, detailed plans show. Click the link below to read.

49 minute London trains backed

THE Government today backed running a high speed train line near to Birmingham International – raising the prospect of 49 minute journeys to London.

Ministers want to build a new station in the area of the existing station and by the National Exhibition Centre.

The move would cut journey times from an hour and 24 minutes said ministers and trains would take about seven minutes to International.

Although in the Green Belt a report said the station would be acceptable under planning law as it is ‘bordered on all sides by motorways and airport infrastructure’ (see map below).

Local MPs today welcomed the news, which will lead to a full public consultation which could see a route open by 2026.

Solihull MP Lorely Burt said: “This is brilliant news for the whole West Midlands.

“That High speed rail will come straight into Birmingham means that Birmingham will be just a short commute from London: a realistic alternative for companies who want to be close to the capital but not have to pay capital prices or suffer capital congestion.”

She said the move would boost the NEC and, coupled with a runway extension, be the ‘icing on the cake’ for Birmingham International Airport.

Meriden MP Caroline Spelman said: “This will give a much needed boost for Birmingham Airport and the NEC and provide a shot in the arm for the West Midlands economy as we have been badly hit by the recession.”

Yet laws which compensate people affected by the line had to be changed, she said and added: “I want to ensure that the effect to people along the route is minimised.”

She was previously accused of going cold on support for the long-mooted plans.

Yet the BBC reports that shadow transport secretary Theresa Villiers said the party were not prepared to "blindly accept" the route.

View New station in a larger map

MP anger at high speed train row

SOLIHULL MP Lorely Burt has hit out at the Conservatives for not committing for a high speed rail plan from London to the West Midlands.

The Liberal Democrat spoke after Tories refused to see an advance copy of a report into where the route should run for the 200mph new routes, to slash journey times to 45 minutes.

Shadow transport secretary Theresa Villiers told the BBC: “We're not going to take Labour's route on trust. We're going to reserve the right to look again at the route.”

Options will be published to the public next month.

Yet Mrs Burt said the plan ‘is vital for the future of Birmingham and the West Midlands and will transform travel across the area as we know it’.

In a press release, Mrs Burt said: “The fact that the Conservatives are willing to put political strategy above the greater interests of the country shows how unfit for Government they are.”

“I hope they quickly come to the realisation that High Speed Two is vital to the West Midlands and stop wasting the taxpayer’s time and money by holding up the process.”

Meanwhile, The Guardian reports Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council is ‘desperate’ for the link to go ahead after meeting with Labour transport boss Lord Adonis.

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Police probe attacks on commuters' cars

POLICE are probing damage to cars parked by commuters in Dorridge streets.

Solihull police said: “It is believed vehicles are being damaged when left in nearby streets by commuters using Dorridge Railway Station, right.

“We will be monitoring this situation and carrying out targeted patrols in the area and will review this priority in February.”

West Midlands Police is working with British Transport Police on the matter, an update on the force’s website says.

Commuters parking in surrounding streets has caused ill-feeling among many residents.

Last month Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council was given a petition over concerns about parking in Arden Road and the surrounding cul de sacs, Aspley Drive and Arden Drive.

Police have refused to release details of where cars had been broken into and what was taken when asked by The Silhillian using the Freedom of Information Act.

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Solihull rush hour up 6.8 per cent

CAR trips into Solihull at peak times have increased by 6.8 per cent in two years, figures show.

An extra 746 trips were made between 2005 and 2007, bringing total peak journeys to 21,414.

Bus journeys fell by 0.5 per cent while rail trips into town rose by 57 per cent, from 406 to 637.

In 2003, 80.7 per cent of journeys were by car, this fell to 80.4 per cent in 2007.

Bus use fell from 17.3 per cent to 16.6 per cent, while train use went from two to three per cent.

The figures were revealed by Centro, which organises public transport in the West Midlands, in its annual report for 2008/09 (page 15).

In a press release, Centro chairman Councillor Gary Clarke said of the regional figures: "Public transport is becoming a more appealing and viable option especially for those fed up with being stuck in congestion during their daily commute.”

It said train punctuality increased from 82.1 per cent to 84.2 per cent.

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Train fares to rise from today

TRAIN fares will increase on some journeys from today.

Operator London Midland will increase some fares by six per cent, it said in a statement.

Its managing director, Steve Banaghan, said: "We recognise that this is a difficult time for many of our passengers in the current economic climate and so we have kept our increases to the lowest possible levels and wherever we can, we have made no increases at all.

"Like every other business we too are facing increases in our costs, but we are forging ahead with our programme of investments."

Fares increasing by 6 per cent:

Anytime Anytime day
Season tickets
Travelcards
Birmingham-Liverpool off peak
Network West Midlands Anytime day
nnetwork and ntrain seasons (West Midlands only)

Fares with zero increase

All off peak fares
All off peak day fares
All Advance fares
All First Class Anytime/Anytime day
Network West Midlands off peak/off-peak day

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65 per cent hike for B'ham fares

TRAIN users face a price hike of 65 per cent on some journeys from Dorridge to Birmingham.

Operator London Midland will not allow passengers to use off peak tickets between 4.35pm and 6pm from January 4.

Only anytime or anytime day tickets can be used. These cost £5.80 compared to a £3.80 off peak ticket.

A leaflet from the firm said: “The new evening peak period covers the times when trains are busiest.

“If you want to continue paying off-peak fares you will probably need to vary your travel time by less than an hour.”

Last month the firm announced it was raising fares by an average 1.2 per cent across its network.

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Cheap train tickets over xmas

LONDON Midland is offering cheaper train fares over the Christmas period. Click here for details.

Train fares to rise

MOST off peak train fares are to go up by about three per cent at the operator which runs trains from Dorridge to the West Midlands.

Yet London Midland said peak fares would fall by 0.4 per cent, giving a boost for morning commuters to Birmingham. The changes come into effect in January.

It said fares will remain unchanged or reduced for 60 per cent of journeys on its services.

This means that all types of fares will rise by 1.2 per cent, it said.

Off peak tickets are trains which arrive in London after 10am and leave West Midlands stations at 9.30am or later and weekends.

The firm said in a statement: “As part of London Midland’s Remedial Plan agreed with the Department for Transport announced last week, 50,000 lower cost tickets will be made available for travel on the network over the Christmas period.

“London Midland will also be providing an extra 400,000 low cost, advance purchase tickets in the next two years.”

It also said it would spend more than £4m on customer information systems.

Photo courtesy of London Midland © 2008.

Spaces double at Hampton-in-Arden station

THE car park at Hampton-in-Arden train station has been expanded from 67 to 124 spaces to encourage more drivers to use the train.

Centro, responsible for developing public transport in the West Midlands, said the train takes 17 minutes into Birmingham compared to 38 by car.

A train into Coventry takes 12 minutes compared to 37 by car, they said.

It hopes the move will end misery for commuters unable to find a space for the morning rush and take 23,000 journeys off the roads a year.

The car park also has extra CCTV cameras, lighting, cycle stores, security fencing and a help call button.

Centro’s Councillor Timothy Huxtable said: “Research shows that these schemes take over 2.8 million journeys off West Midlands roads every year, confirming how important they are in encouraging people to use public transport and the vital role they play in reducing congestion and carbon emissions in the region.

“We’re delighted to have been able to provide these extra spaces for Solihull residents at Hampton-in-Arden station, and will endeavour to continue to increase the facilities at all our stations – not just for car drivers but for cyclists, walkers, bus users and car sharers too.”

The organisation now manages 6,600 spaces in the region which it says takes more than 24.5 m car miles off the roads.