Rail and Waterbourne Freight

Extract from the Worcestershire Local Transport Plan 2006 -2011.

Rail / Water Freight Haulage

At present there are no major rail freight facilities located within Worcestershire, and most potential sites for such facilities are located away from the strategic road network, meaning that use as road / rail freight interchanges would generate HGV movements on unsuitable roads.  However, opportunities exist for the development of facilities at locations outside Worcestershire, but which would serve operators within the County, notably at Ashchurch near Tewkesbury which has good access to the strategic road and rail networks, and is convenient for the Vale of Evesham.

The County Council will support the development of railfreight facilities within the County as well as the use of facilities that are conveniently accessed from the County.  The River Severn is a historic transport corridor which is now used predominantly for leisure boat traffic. However, there is potential for greater use to be made of the waterway for freight movement, and a £2.5 million project for the transfer of sand and gravel by RCM Material in South Worcestershire has been developed with the assistance of a DfT grant. This will enable 2.75 million tonnes of aggregates to be moved by barge between Ripple and Ryall, saving 340,000 lorry movements on the local road network. This project highlights the potential that the river has for freight transfer, and the County Council will support further such initiatives.

Policy FQP3: To explore the greater use of rail and inland waterways for the carriage of freight within the County.

Location of Freight Generating Activity

Within Worcestershire, freight generating activity, particularly related to the agricultural industry, has often developed in rural areas with poor access to the strategic road network. This is a particular problem within the Vale of Evesham, and the establishment of the Vale of Evesham FQP in partnership with Gloucestershire and Warwickshire County Councils was a response to the resulting conflict between local communities and the freight generators over the impact of heavy goods vehicles. The County Council will therefore seek to work with the Local Planning Authority to ensure that new proposals for freight generating activities such as packhouses and distribution centres are directed to locations with good access to the strategic road and / or rail networks. In addition, existing activities will be encouraged to re-locate from environmentally sensitive locations to more accessible sites.

Policy FQP4: Work with District Councils to identify opportunities for the re-location of freight generators from environmentally sensitive locations to sites with direct access to strategic road or rail network

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