Haxby Station Project

Working in partnership with Network Rail and the Department for Transport (DfT), City of York Council have been striving to fulfil a decades-long ambition to bring a railway station back to Haxby.

The original Haxby Station closed in 1930 and we're progressing plans to bring a station back to the area, reconnecting neighbourhoods in the north of York to the rail network, increasing sustainable travel options and improving connections to towns and cities across the country.

Read more about:

• The Haxby Station Project
• The location of Haxby Railway Station
• What you've told us
• Key facts
• Public Reports

The Haxby Station Project

The ambition for a re-opened railway station at Haxby has been held for decades. An opportunity to bid for government New Stations Funding arose in early 2020 and we engaged with residents at the time to understand their views on the idea of bringing a railway station back to the area, to help inform our bid.

Following this engagement, we applied for funding to government and at the end of 2020, the government announced that £400k had been made available to fund further development work and identify a single preferred site. Following further feasibility work undertaken by Network Rail and City of York Council during 2021, the Executive made the decision that the new station should be at a site off Towthorpe Road, Haxby.

We launched a further consultation in spring 2022 on the proposed location, and to find out more about what residents would want from a station in Haxby. We also wanted to better understand any local concerns. This helped us to develop our bid for further funding to the government.

At an Executive meeting in October 2022 councillors received an update on the project and agreed that a planning application be submitted for the new railway station at the appropriate time and to progress the project to the next stages.

Since then, working closely with Network Rail and other partners, we've been busy developing the project further and securing additional funding to drive the project forward - being awarded a further £1.1 million development funding in 2022 and another £2.1 million in later 2024, to bring the project to "construction-ready" stage. A strategic business case was accepted and endorsed by the DfT in late 2023.

We're now at the point where a full planning application has been submitted for construction of the new station at Towthorpe Road. This is scheduled to be determined summer 2024, whilst further detailed design is being undertaken by Network Rail and their contractors. Subject to planning approval, we expect that construction on-site will commence at the beginning of 2025, with the new station open to the public at the start of 2026.

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The location of Haxby Railway Station

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In December 2021, after considering the feasibility of potential locations, the Executive agreed that Towthorpe Road was the preferred site. The site presented the strongest case for a station in Haxby with a much lower deliverability risk compared with other locations, most of which were not viable options. Additionally, the evaluation concluded that nearby residents would be less adversely impacted by the potential development of this site, both during construction and once the station was operational.

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What you've told us

Throughout this project we've been listening to local communities as we work to bring a railway station to Haxby. As well as meeting with and updating local councillors we've regularly spoken to parish and town councils. In addition to this, we've carried out 2 engagement exercises to understand the needs of residents. This has helped us to tackle issues or concerns and helped to shape our previous bid to the government.

Thank you to everyone who has had their say.

2020 consultation

In 2020 we carried out an initial consultation to understand the thoughts of residents on the idea of bringing a railway back to the area.

With over 1,000 people responding the consultation found:

• 91% supported the idea of a railway station in Haxby (82% strongly supported)
• the vast majority of respondents to the consultation were from the Haxby, Wigginton, Strensall and Earswick areas
• of those that currently travelled for employment or education, 87% usually did so to York city centre. 25% said that their destination would be Leeds, with 13% saying London
• 73% said that they would likely walk or cycle to the new station
• the main anticipated benefits of a new station included: Reduced traffic (most commonly associated with travel into York); Increased connectivity; and Improved commuting opportunities
• 83% said that they anticipated that they would not need to use their car for leisure trips to York, Leeds or Scarborough. 79% said that they anticipated that they would be able to access Manchester airport via rail
• the main anticipated concerns of a new station included: Concerns over parking (especially near the station); Increased traffic in Haxby; and Noise associated with trains

2022 consultation

In spring 2022 we carried out a consultation to allow residents to express their views on the initial plans, designs and use of the new station proposed at Towthorpe Road, ahead of the funding bid being submitted to government.

With 1,200 people responding, the consultation found:

• 81% of participants supported the proposal for a station in Haxby (67% strongly support), 14% were opposed, with 5% neutral
• 83% of respondents said that they would use Haxby station, to one extent or another
• 74% of participants lived in Haxby or the immediate surrounding villages (for example, Wigginton, Strensall, Towthorpe and Earswick)
• 96% of participants lived within the City of York boundary
• 78% said that they would use the station for Leisure travel (for example, shopping; visiting families), 66% would use it as part of longer distance journeys (such as for journeys to London and Manchester Airport), 33% would use the station as part of their daily commute
• 50% said that they would use a re-routed bus service to travel to and from the station whereas 33% said that they would not
• 57% said that they would likely walk to the new station, 47% said that they may use a bus service, 30% said that they would likely cycle and 29% said that they would use private motor vehicle
• 65% of respondents said that opening a station in Haxby meant that they would not need to use their car as much; 53% said that they would be able to access Manchester Airport via rail and 32% said that it would allow them to travel to work or study for their commute
• 70% said that they would be more likely to visit Leeds due to a new station in Haxby, 64% said York city centre and 63% said that they’d be more likely to visit Scarborough

There were also a number of comments throughout the consultation with people asking questions, raising concerns or making general comments. The themes of these responses were predominantly:

• the number of car parking spaces (not stated at the time)
• the need for a walking route and a cycle route from Strensall and/or Towthorpe
• concerns over fly-parking and traffic on nearby residential streets
• road safety concerns
• questions over Towthorpe Road as the location
• general supportive statements of the project

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Key facts

The key facts of this project are:

• its cost is £24 million
• if planning approval is granted construction is expected to commence early 2025
• this would mean the station could open to the public at the beginning of 2026
• it's being delivered by Network Rail, in partnership with City of York Council and Department for Transport
• there will be a new unmanned station, located between York and Malton stations (on the Scarborough line), expected to be operated by Trans-Pennine Trains

Some details from the planning application include:

• 2 platforms (155m in length each), with clear platform widths of minimum 3.3m
• level-access with ramps (from car park level to platform); lifts (and stairs); and footbridge
• passenger car park with space for 154 vehicles. This includes 8 disabled spaces; 8 enlarged bays; and EV charging for 26 vehicles; passenger vehicular drop-off point; and motorcycle bays
• separate bus and taxi area, comprising bus-stop, taxi rank and turning circle
• vehicle access from Towthorpe Road, Haxby
• covered cycle parking for 90 bicycles (2 hubs, 1 on each platform)
• cycle, pedestrian and mobility scooter access via a new shared-use path from Swarthdale/Usher Park Road
• an additional shared-use path alongside Towthorpe Road will connect the new station to New Forge Court
• speed-limit reduction (to 30mph) and associated traffic-calming on Towthorpe Road as it passes the station
• parking restrictions to be introduced on nearby residential streets to prevent rail passengers from fly-parking instead of using the station car park

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Public reports

• Executive Report 30 September 2021 - Issue details: Haxby Station, Update and Land Acquisition
• Executive Report 9 December 2021 - Issue details: Haxby Station, Site Selection
• Executive Report 7 February 2022 - Issue details: Capital Programme Budget 2022/23 to 2026/27
• Executive Report 6 October 2022 - Issue details: Haxby Station, Update and Next Steps

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Also see

• Major developments
• York Central
• My City Centre York
• Trains