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Sites for Labour's New Towns that already have rail connections

The Ham

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If you are going to impose such restrictions on developers in an attempt to get more support for development (which personally I think is futile, but there we go), I would suggest we'd have to do a ground up estimate on actual future needs for such facilities.

Estates near where I grew up were provided with shops and the like that promptly closed due to lack of demand.

eCommerce and motorised transport (be it car or even e-bike) has rendered ultra local facilities like shops far less economic than they once were. Especially with steadily escalating labour costs, a trend which is likely to accelerate in future due to demographic issues.

It does however depend on the area.

If there's enough demand for a supermarket (more than a Tesco Express or similar) then they call be viable to be built/implemented without the development delivering them.

For example a nearby village (circa 5,500 people, which is about 2,300 homes) when they lost their BMW garage gained a reasonable Co-op on the site (there was a smaller one before but it expanded when it moved to the new site).

Basically, if a sore is large enough to justify a 2 form entry primary school (which can be as low as 1,100 new homes, of there's under provision locally, but it's more typically around the 1,600 home mark) then unless there's overly good facilities nearby there's a fairly good chance that facilities like a small supermarket, Doctors (or retail suitable for such provision), dentist (or again suitable retail provision) and some other retail space is probably justified.

Build two or three floors of flats over the retail usage and then the housing density will also help with public transport provision serving the area.

A 4 form secondary school can justified at around the 3,200 mark (although again typically a bit higher around 3,500).

As such, even if there's only 5,000 dwellings delivered, that's still more than is needed to justify a reasonable secondary school (5, maybe 6 form entry) potentially 2 or 3 primary schools (depending on if they are 3 or 2 form entry).

Also 5,000 homes (about 12,000 people) is slightly in the low side for a leisure centre, although it depends on what's nearby and if it's shared with a school.
 
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Snow1964

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Not a completely new town, but a 2500 home development including new schools. The site runs south to Yarnbrook, and one boundary is the railway line between Trowbridge and Westbury.

No plans for a new station or reinstatement of 4th platform at Westbury to allow more commuter trains, but they are funding a £35m diversion of A350 away from West Ashton, towards Trowbridge.

Plans for a massive new neighbourhood of 2,500-homes to the south east of Trowbridge have been given the green light.

Ashton Park, to the south east of Trowbridge, will be the county's biggest new housing development.

It will have 14 hectares of employment land, two primary schools, and allocation for a secondary school.

The development will be built in four phases, with phase one - the part closest to Trowbridge - consisting of 350 homes, 375 in phase two, 725 in phase 3, and 750 in phase 4.
During a marathon two-and-a-half hour discussion at the council's strategic planning committee meeting, members were assured that legal agreements between the developers, landowners, and council are ready to be signed.

Councillors were told that although house-builders Persimmon and Barratt Redrow - who have agreed a 50/50 development contract on the site - want to start work as soon as possible, it could be ten or even 15 years before the new neighbourhood is completely finished.

 

md2016

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It would be an enlarged village mainly to the south of the existing village and nothing more, mostly on land IIRC that was previously used for gravel extraction. It's currently used by wild deer and cattle to graze, or for public recreation. Any expansion eastwards would not be within short walking distance from the railway station.

The green area outlined on the website includes the current residential area, allotments, plus sites used for commercial/industrial estates, civil aircraft navigation, water treatment and farmland used for dairy cattle.

The retail park pictured in the Labour Think Tank's post is extremely well used since it's redevelopment a decade ago. Closure would be devastating for those employed there and the families that rely on them.

Due to the gravel extraction, some of the land is on a steep gradient so bike commuters would get a daily work out, an e-bike would be an option but remember most ebikes are banned from TfL trains.

New builds are priced at an absolute premium for the South East due to the location (plus proximity of good secondary schools, jobs and Heathrow), so generally unaffordable for first time buyers. IIRC the recent new build estate at Taplow Riverside/Skindles prices were between £500k - £1million+ depending on the property. It may be however a great opportunity for the banks and BlackRock.

Furthermore, government would need to give Taplow back their GP Surgery as well, the Burnham surgery (which is the one used by Taplow residents) can barely cope as it is. There is one small primary school in the village.

Public transport to Taplow village itself (not the station or the A4) is poor compared to neighbouring areas, a Bucks council tendered Tuesday & Friday 2 return trip bus service between Maidenhead and Slough via Taplow, Dorney and Eton. Car ownership would be as usual, an absolute necessity and would significantly increase traffic on the local A roads and pressure on local parking.

Sorry to be largely negative, but the Think Tank's post paints an overly positive picture on residential construction there when the reality would be somewhat different.
I haven't read the Think Tank post. I just run (and occassionally drive) all over Bucks, Berks and Herts, and Taplow is striking for it's great commuter links, poor use of land and high levels of poor quality green/ brown space, with excellent quality green space to the north and south. It's a high demand area right in the commuter belt on the Elizabeth line that runs through London, but a number of trains skip the station through a lack of demand. So I can see why others have noticed its obvious potential.

Few of your above points feels insurmountable. The Taplow/ Skindles plot is very high value, top spec, river adjacent/ facing, 4/5 bed modern housing, and are not really comparable to mid-rise flats which could utilise old car garages/ industrial sites near the trainline. I don't know enough about the land quality. Has the Jubilee River ever burst it's banks significantly? I'd instinctively bet some of the loudest arguments are being made by the NIMBYs that have built huge houses on very similar-seeming land are now claiming the rest of the land is too poor quality/ prone to flooding to build more, but that could be my bias... The single bridge on the route through to Maidenhead (by Skindles) would probably be a big constraint to be fair.
 

AlastairFraser

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Has the Jubilee River ever burst it's banks significantly?
The Jubilee River itself, no. But a lot of the area has had issues with the mainline Thames.

If you wanted a good site for transit orientated developed in this part of the Thames Valley, reopening the Poyle branch to West Drayton as some form of automated light rail (or perhaps a Poyle station on the Western Rail Access to Heathrow if that ever got built) and building a sizeable residential development (10k houses plus) there would be a good idea. A lot of the land available isn't desirable (due to M25 proximity), so land values are low. Good bus connections to Slough and Heathrow too, lots of local employment available.
 

Magdalia

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This isn't on the scale of new towns, but definitely has rail connections. The Department for Transport have announced the merger of the property arms of Network Rail and London and Continental Railways to promote release of surplus railway land for housing. Four places are mentioned: Newcastle, Manchester, Nottingham and Cambridge. The announcement is vague about Cambridge and I suspect that it is land near Cambridge North that just about everyone was expecting to be developed anyway.


The UK government has pledged to build up to 40,000 new homes on disused railway land, including former goods yards, industrial sites and station buildings, over the next ten years.

The £1bn development plans will start with previously identified projects in Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Cambridge.

The government said it was part of its "brownfield first" approach and would create "vibrant" new communities.

However, an interim target of 15,000 in the first five years, is a small fraction of the total 1.5 million new homes the government has promised by the end of this parliament, plans that are already facing big hurdles.

Heidi Alexander was on Radio 4 just before the 0700 news, presumably to talk about this, but all of the interview was taken up by the Middle East.
 

brad465

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This isn't on the scale of new towns, but definitely has rail connections. The Department for Transport have announced the merger of the property arms of Network Rail and London and Continental Railways to promote release of surplus railway land for housing. Four places are mentioned: Newcastle, Manchester, Nottingham and Cambridge. The announcement is vague about Cambridge and I suspect that it is land near Cambridge North that just about everyone was expecting to be developed anyway.

Seems sensible given the land is poorly used and probably looked uglier in its previous life than it will with housing (and hopefully sensibly designed community space). One would hope the railway connection means they can provide decent transport links via the railway if it's former land next to an existing railway (certainly the case in Newcastle).
Heidi Alexander was on Radio 4 just before the 0700 news, presumably to talk about this, but all of the interview was taken up by the Middle East.
Another case of not getting their comms up to scratch; they should have known the Middle East would dominate given the government's announcement yesterday evening, and delayed the announcement about homes on railway land by a day or two to give it more precedence (assuming it's a positive story for them).
 

BrianW

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Seems sensible given the land is poorly used and probably looked uglier in its previous life than it will with housing (and hopefully sensibly designed community space). One would hope the railway connection means they can provide decent transport links via the railway if it's former land next to an existing railway (certainly the case in Newcastle).

Another case of not getting their comms up to scratch; they should have known the Middle East would dominate given the government's announcement yesterday evening, and delayed the announcement about homes on railway land by a day or two to give it more precedence (assuming it's a positive story for them).
Re Government Comms on this- I have to agree withyour coments regarding the interview of Heidi Alexander (which I felt she dealt with well being the Transport Secretary and not a Forign Minister or PM!) Such 'hijacking' happens routinely, and is I think an unreasonable expectation that has developed.

Regarding this use of 'brownfield' sites- remediation takes time and expenditure. I suggest they should be 'greened over' cheaply (they are often in areas deprived of parkland) as recreational replacement of accessible low-grade 'countryside' 'areas becoming New Towns. I am imagining a new Turnberry, with golf being a classless pursuit ....
 

Magdalia

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Another case of not getting their comms up to scratch; they should have known the Middle East would dominate given the government's announcement yesterday evening, and delayed the announcement about homes on railway land by a day or two to give it more precedence (assuming it's a positive story for them).

Re Government Comms on this- I have to agree withyour coments regarding the interview of Heidi Alexander (which I felt she dealt with well being the Transport Secretary and not a Forign Minister or PM!) Such 'hijacking' happens routinely, and is I think an unreasonable expectation that has developed.
It is unusual for an announcement like this to be made while parliament is in recess. I suspect that it had already been postponed at least once, and maybe can't wait until parliament reconvenes in September for commercial reasons.
 

Mag_seven

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The House Building proposal on former railway land is being discussed here:

 

Magdalia

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Those with long memories may remember a development proposal near Tring that was rejected by Michael Gove early in 2024.

A new version has now been resubmitted:


Plans for 1,400 new homes have been resubmitted after a council included them in its Local Plan having at first successfully appealed against the project.

Developer Harrow Estates said the proposed new garden village suburb, known as Marshcroft, in Tring, Hertfordshire, would include a new primary school, provision for a secondary school, sports hub and green spaces.

The firm said the project was a key part of Dacorum Borough Council's New Local Plan, external to 2041.

A previous application for the homes was the subject of an inquiry in 2023 and the former levelling up secretary Michael Gove ruled against the green belt development in March 2024.
 

Bald Rick

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BerkshireRails

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I know this predates Labour being in power however it might help meet Labour's goals by building a new station on the Great Western Mainline in the Ruscombe Junction area called Twyford Gardens to serve a new housing estate. It looks to have both platforms on the Mains and Relief Lines.
 

AlastairFraser

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I know this predates Labour being in power however it might help meet Labour's goals by building a new station on the Great Western Mainline in the Ruscombe Junction area called Twyford Gardens to serve a new housing estate. It looks to have both platforms on the Mains and Relief Lines.
Issue is that it would largely be taking existing demand off Twyford.

The agricultural land in the area is very high quality and high value, which is partly why the Berkshire post war new town was built at Bracknell, instead of the originally planned White Waltham/Waltham St Lawrence.

The land in the Bracknell area is mostly low quality heathland, which is cheap and not so useful for growing food.

If you wanted a site close to the GWML, the site of Didcot A power station wouldn't be terrible idea if it was permitted by the authorities.
Brownfield land, close to a station, cheap to build on, good road connections, lots of local employment opportunities.
 

bspahh

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The BBC report is a bit more clear on what has happened today regarding the sewage works near Cambridge North.

The government has withdrawn funding from the Housing Infrastructure Fund, so the sewage works to the North of Cambridge will not now be moved.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgvjexe0w1o says:
Sewage plant move halted after funding withdrawn

The relocation of the treatment plant was supposed to allow for a new district to be built in the north-east of Cambridge

A sewage treatment works will not be moved to green belt land near a village after government funding for the relocation and development was withdrawn.

Anglian Water was given permission to replace its current Cambridge facility, near Milton, with a new plant on land known as Honey Hill, close to Horningsea.

However, Cambridge City Council said the government had now confirmed "funding will not be made available to support the delivery of Anglian Water's Waste Water Treatment Plant relocation".

Anglian Water said the decision was "disappointing", but the government said cost projection increases made the plan "unaffordable".

The water company said: "Our teams are reviewing all options to increase capacity to support growth at our existing treatment works in Cambridge."

The Development Consent Order (DCO) to relocate the Waste Water Treatment Plant was approved by the government in April 2025.

The treatment works were being moved to make way for new homes in the north-east of Cambridge.

The council said the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government (MHCLG) made its decision to withdraw funding from the Housing Infrastructure Fund after costs of the relocation increased "significantly as a result of rising costs of materials and labour and disruption to global supply chains, an increase that MHCLG said was unaffordable".

The council added: "As a result of this decision, Cambridge City Council and Anglian Water's proposals for the new 'Hartree' development on the current site, which would form the heart of a proposed new district in North East Cambridge, will not be able to be delivered."

David Barnetson, programme director at Anglian Water, said: "Whilst it's disappointing that the project won't now go ahead, we're committed to supporting Cambridge and the wider area through its rapid projected growth, whilst continuing to protect customers and the environment.

"Our teams are reviewing all options to increase capacity to support growth at our existing treatment works in Cambridge."

In a statement, MHCLG said: "It is vital that taxpayers' money is used responsibly, and cost projection increases have made the relocation proposal unaffordable, with the additional £400m now required beyond the budget available.

"We are committed to ensuring Cambridge has the housing and water infrastructure it needs to reach its full growth potential as we deliver on our Plan for Change."
 

Technologist

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Further developments and some better investigative journalism on the Ebbsfleet jumping spiders.

It turns out that the land that Natural England designated as an SSSI which has stopped the development of Ebbsfleet didn't even have any environmental value and was only covered due to Natural England's internal processes grabbing adjacent land with the same nominal environment type, even though the site with all the rare species is separated from the site that blocked Ebbsfleet by an industrial estate, a dual carriageway, HS1 and a 25m tall cliff!

 

PTR 444

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Not a completely new town, but a 2500 home development including new schools. The site runs south to Yarnbrook, and one boundary is the railway line between Trowbridge and Westbury.

No plans for a new station or reinstatement of 4th platform at Westbury to allow more commuter trains, but they are funding a £35m diversion of A350 away from West Ashton, towards Trowbridge.




Slightly off topic, but only just read the article. Looking at the proposed West Ashton relief road, I hope they are going to build it as a dual carriageway and tie it in with a full upgrade of the A350 corridor between the M4 and Warminster. I believe this road is earmarked to replace the A36/A46 trunk road through Bath, as that is becoming increasingly unsuitable for strategic through traffic. Also, the A350 corridor towns are expanding rapidly and definitely warrant better transport links to the M4 and beyond.

On that note, has a London Paddington - Warminster train service via Swindon and Melksham ever been proposed. That may be needed sooner rather than later if road building can’t keep up with housing growth.
 
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Snow1964

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Although the formal new towns have still not been announced by Labour Government, we still don't yet know where they will be.

In meantime, I have been looking at the recently published Dorset housing allocation plan.

It appears to include around 4500 homes next to Moreton station (mainly on north side of the railway)

There is a Dorchester North zone, also bordering a railway, but currently no station there.

Another large area with thousands of homes proposed is near Lytchett Minster which would be easy to serve by a short single track branch from East Holton, passing just north east of the closed area where the WW1 cordite factory was, (a site that formerly had all sorts of dodgy chemicals and acids). Would be a good western terminus option if the proposed extra cross Bournemouth conurbation train materialises.

There are also a number of sites Wimborne, Ferndown, Verwood etc. Used to be a railway through middle of all this (former Southampton and Dorchester line, but it closed in 1977), and has been partly built over.

Sturminster Marshall also appears to be up for another big housing allocation (but the southern end of Somerset and Dorset line is no more), looks like Corfe Mullen and Blandford Forum also formerly on that line are being expanded too.

Link to map, it is interactive, can zoom in and click on each site which is shown as red boxes

 

PTR 444

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Although the formal new towns have still not been announced by Labour Government, we still don't yet know where they will be.

In meantime, I have been looking at the recently published Dorset housing allocation plan.

It appears to include around 4500 homes next to Moreton station (mainly on north side of the railway)

There is a Dorchester North zone, also bordering a railway, but currently no station there.

Another large area with thousands of homes proposed is near Lytchett Minster which would be easy to serve by a short single track branch from East Holton, passing just north east of the closed area where the WW1 cordite factory was, (a site that formerly had all sorts of dodgy chemicals and acids). Would be a good western terminus option if the proposed extra cross Bournemouth conurbation train materialises.

There are also a number of sites Wimborne, Ferndown, Verwood etc. Used to be a railway through middle of all this (former Southampton and Dorchester line, but it closed in 1977), and has been partly built over.

Sturminster Marshall also appears to be up for another big housing allocation (but the southern end of Somerset and Dorset line is no more), looks like Corfe Mullen and Blandford Forum also formerly on that line are being expanded too.

Link to map, it is interactive, can zoom in and click on each site which is shown as red boxes

As a Dorset resident, this looks really ambitious. You’d like to think all that housing development will come with the appropriate transport infrastructure to support the additional population. At the very least the A31 should be dualled between Ferndown and Bere Regis, although I’m doubtful that will ever happen.

Perhaps the silver lining in the cloud will be an improved bus network serving the new developments, which is much needed for Dorset anyway.
 

brad465

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Housing Secretary Steve Reed has announced the three new towns to begin construction before the next election: Tempsford, Leeds South Bank and Crews Hill (North London):


The construction of three new towns will begin before the next general election, Labour has pledged.
A taskforce has recommended 12 locations in England for development, with three areas - Tempsford in Bedfordshire, Leeds South Bank, and Crews Hill in north London - identified as the most promising sites.
Housing Secretary Steve Reed is expected to announce the plans in a speech on the opening day of Labour's annual party conference.
Labour has put housebuilding at the centre of its vision of how to get the economy growing, promising to build 1.5 million new homes by 2029.
However, the industry has warned the government faces huge challenges to reach its target, with housebuilders facing pressures including rising costs and taxes.
Meanwhile, recent figures showed the number of planning approvals for new homes in England fell to a record low during Labour's first year in office.

The promise of a "new generation of new towns" was included in Labour's election manifesto last year.
The 12 proposed developments range from large-scale standalone new communities, to expansions of existing towns and regeneration schemes within cities.
Sites in Cheshire, South Gloucestershire, East Devon, Plymouth and Manchester are among those which have been recommended for development.
The chosen sites will be subject to environmental assessments and consultation, with the government confirming the final locations and funding next spring.
Labour said each new town would have at least 10,000 homes and they could collectively result in 300,000 homes being built across England over the coming decades.
The government has welcomed a recommendation from the New Towns Taskforce that at least 40% of these new homes should be classed as affordable housing.
A New Towns Unit will be tasked with bringing in millions of pounds of public and private sector funding to invest in GP surgeries, schools, green spaces, libraries and transport for the new developments.
The taskforce has recommended new towns are delivered by development corporations, which could have special planning powers to compulsory purchase land, invest in local services, and grant planning permission.
This follows the model of the regeneration of Stratford in east London during and after the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: "For so many families, homeownership is a distant dream.
"My Labour government will sweep aside the blockers to get homes built, building the next generation of new towns."
In his speech, the housing secretary will promise to "build baby build", while "taking lessons from the post-war Labour government housing boom".
"This party built new towns after the war to meet our promise of homes fit for heroes. Now, with the worst economic inheritance since that war, we will once again build cutting-edge communities to provide homes fit for families of all shapes and sizes," Reed is expected to say.
After World War Two Clement Attlee's government planned the first wave of new towns, including in Stevenage, Crawley and Welwyn Garden City, to relocate people from poor or bombed-out housing, with development corporations assigned responsibility for building them.
The announcement comes as Labour members gather in Liverpool for the party's annual conference.
It will be Reed's first major speech since he took over from Angela Rayner as housing secretary, after she resigned for failing to pay enough tax on a flat purchase.
It has been a bruising few weeks for Sir Keir, who is facing questions over his leadership and the direction of his party.
With Labour trailing behind Reform UK in the polls, the prime minister has stepped up his attacks on Nigel Farage's party.
Arriving in Liverpool on Saturday, he warned Reform would "tear this country apart" and said the conference would be an opportunity to set out his alternative to the "toxic divide and decline" offered by the party.

Where could the next new towns be?​

The New Towns Taskforce has recommended 12 locations are taken forward by the government:
  • A standalone settlement in Adlington, Cheshire East
  • A corridor of development in South Gloucestershire, across Brabazon and the West Innovation Arc
  • A development bringing together Chase Park and Crews Hill in Enfield, north London
  • Redevelopment of the former airbase at Heyford Park in Cherwell, Oxfordshire
  • An urban development in the South Bank area of Leeds
  • New homes in Victoria North, on the edge of Manchester city centre
  • A standalone settlement in Marlcombe, East Devon
  • A renewal of Milton Keynes city centre and an expansion of its periphery, alongside a new mass transit system
  • Densified development in Plymouth
  • A new settlement in Tempsford, Bedfordshire
  • A riverside settlement in Thamesmead, south-east London
  • Expanded development around Worcestershire Parkway train station

Of these three Tempsford would be the much-discussed interchange station with the ECML and EWR, Crews Hill is served by the Hertford loop, with Leeds South Bank appears to be close enough to Leeds station and would benefit from TPU.

Other towns/developments of interest are Brabazon, which would be served by the new Henbury service in Bristol, and Thamesmead, which needs a DLR extension for support.

In contrast, Marlcombe in East Devon is nowhere near any station, though is very close to Exeter Airport. The most viable way to serve this by public transport is a bus link to either Digby & Sowton and/or Cranbrook.
 

Baxenden Bank

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Housing Secretary Steve Reed has announced the three new towns to begin construction before the next election: Tempsford, Leeds South Bank and Crews Hill (North London):




Of these three Tempsford would be the much-discussed interchange station with the ECML and EWR, Crews Hill is served by the Hertford loop, with Leeds South Bank appears to be close enough to Leeds station and would benefit from TPU.

Other towns/developments of interest are Brabazon, which would be served by the new Henbury service in Bristol, and Thamesmead, which needs a DLR extension for support.

In contrast, Marlcombe in East Devon is nowhere near any station, though is very close to Exeter Airport. The most viable way to serve this by public transport is a bus link to either Digby & Sowton and/or Cranbrook.
Several of those don't appear to be new towns, rather developments in existing urban areas, for example:
  • An urban development in the South Bank area of Leeds
  • New homes in Victoria North, on the edge of Manchester city centre
  • A renewal of Milton Keynes city centre and an expansion of its periphery, alongside a new mass transit system
  • Densified development in Plymouth
 

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Not sure if it’s been previously mentioned in this thread but Worcestershire Parklands, based around Worcestershire Parkway, has been proposed and is on the list of sites on the BBC New Towns article this morning. I seem to remember when Parkway was being built many commentators saying it was a pointless station with no purpose. But it is the classic example of build it and they will come.
 
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Snow1964

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I understand an area in north Hampshire between Micheldever and Overton stations has been looked at, for a 20,000-25,000 home new town too. Although maybe it didn't make final shortlist.
 

Nottingham59

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Labour said each new town would have at least 10,000 homes and they could collectively result in 300,000 homes being built across England over the coming decades.

Nowhere near ambitious enough. The country needs 300,000 new homes per year.
 

Magdalia

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Housing Secretary Steve Reed has announced the three new towns to begin construction before the next election: Tempsford, Leeds South Bank and Crews Hill (North London)
Thanks for posting.

We don't get a ranking but we do get a top 3, and Tempsford as expected is one of them. Now the government needs to get on with delivering East West Rail through Tempsford.

Crews Hill is unexpected. The site doesn't look very big, but has advantages of being close to the M25 and the Herford Loop, which has spare rail capacity. It is a big opportunity for the railway, which now needs a 4 platform station for Crews Hill New Town, with running lines on the outside and 2 south facing bays in the middle. Then the new 4 platform station would allow Crews Hill New Town trains to run through the Thameslink core with a 2tph all day service, bringing Enfield into Thameslink too. Hopefully we could get a Thameslink 2tph all day to Welwyn GC service at the same time.

I don't know much about Leeds and haven't been able to find South Bank on a map: can someone with local knowledge say where it is please?
 
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Nottingham59

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I don't know much about Leeds and haven'r been able to find South Bank on a map: can someone with local knowledge say where it is please?
I assume it's the south bank of the River Aire?

EDIT:
The new town proposal is 258 hectares in the South Bank area and located directly south of Leeds city centre. Leeds South Bank provides an opportunity to deliver up to 13,000 new homes and three million square feet of new commercial space to form a distinct new urban community to boost Leeds’ contribution to economic growth.

There is a sort of splodge on a map in the full report, which isn't very helpful
1759047892439.png

 
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Magdalia

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There is a sort of splodge on a map in the full report, which isn't very helpful
Thanks for finding the full report. I agree that the maps are not very helpful. Green circles are what I expect from consultants, I would hope that government task forces could do better.
 

Nottingham59

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Thanks for finding the full report. I agree that the maps are not very helpful. Green circles are what I expect from consultants, I would hope that government task forces could do better.
I'm sure it's deliberate. They didn't say "200-300 hectares". They said 258, so they have already chosen the exact area and its boundaries. Publishing a blob makes it less likely that serious opposition gets off the ground in the short term.

258ha, by the way is about 1.5km square, so covers most of the land between the river and the M621 motorway. The blob is around 2.5km across, so quite a sizable chunk of it is included in the planned zone.
 
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Baxenden Bank

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I'm sure it's deliberate. They didn't say "200-300 hectares". They said 258, so they have already chosen the exact area and its boundaries. Publishing a blob makes it less likely that serious opposition gets off the ground in the short term.

258ha, by the way is about 1.5km square, so covers most of the land between the river and the M621 motorway. The blob is around 2.5km across, so quite a sizable chunk of it is included in the planned zone.
Don't believe anything until you see the detail. Then check the numbers yourself. On several occasions I dealt with regeneration consultancies who promised (say) 5,000 new houses as a headline figure. Deep in the glossy document there would be a table of development sites which only totalled 2,500 dwellings. When challenged you just got sheepish looks from them!

Hence the wow headline figures of 350,000 residents for Tempsford, then people who know the area point out the floodplains etc.

Just like Boris Johnson and his boosterism. Promise loads, move on quickly, then say 'the debate has moved on' when challenged on the detail.
 

Iskra

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I’d expect the bit in Leeds is the area immediately West of Halfords which is semi-derelict. It’s a bit of a stretch to call it a new town though, as it’s just extending the existing city centre development out towards Holbeck. I’m sure it will be positive for the city though.
 

Magdalia

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Hence the wow headline figures of 350,000 residents for Tempsford, then people who know the area point out the floodplains etc.
The task force report says this on the possible size of Tempsford:

The new town proposal near Tempsford in Bedfordshire is a unique opportunity with potential to provide over 40,000 homes in a standalone greenfield settlement at the intersection of the East Coast Main Line (ECML) and East West Rail (EWR), in the heart of the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor. The proposed EWR station would provide excellent connectivity for new and existing residents taking an ‘infrastructure-first’ approach.

When we discussed the 350k number I suggested a population of 50-100k was feasible, 40k homes is consistent with the upper end of that range.
 

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