Pye Corner railway station


Pye Corner railway station is a station serving a residential area in the west of Newport, Wales, between the suburbs of Bassaleg and High Cross. It opened on 14 December 2014.

History

Proposal

A report published by the South East Wales Transport Alliance in 2006 envisaged the extension of services on the Ebbw Valley Railway to Newport and the addition of new stations at and Pye Corner. It was forecast that 135,000 journeys would be made to and from Pye Corner which had a catchment population of 19,040 within and 4,312 within. Provision of the station was set as a priority in Sewta's Regional Transport Plan published in 2008 and the aspiration was reflected in Network Rail's Wales Route Utilisation Strategy published in November 2008. Land for the station was safeguarded in Newport City Council's Unitary Development Plan.
In March 2012, proposals for a single-platform station, situated to the east of the line and accessed from a new road junction on Western Valley Road opposite High Cross Lane, were put out to consultation. The plans included provision for a second platform to be provided at a later date. In March 2013, the Secretary of State for Transport, Patrick McLoughlin, announced that Pye Corner was a "front-runner" in terms of funding for new stations, along with and. The grant of £2.5m was confirmed in May 2013, to which the Welsh Government would add a further £1m.
The station's location is close to the former Bassaleg Junction station.

Construction

In February 2014, a planning application for the station was passed by Newport City Council, with planners recommending the construction of a screen or fence to protect the privacy of properties adjacent to the station which back on to the line.

Opening

The first train to arrive at the station on the opening day of 14 December 2014 was the 09:15 from Ebbw Vale. An hourly service runs on the single-platform station between and.