I have been campaigning for Grove Station to be re-opened since I was first elected. There is strong local support for this, as shown when I carried out a survey which showed 98% of local people were in favour!
With the local population continuing to grow, there is a clear need for the station. Grove Station would better connect people in the area, reduce our reliance on cars, be good for the environment and boost local businesses.
I have been championing the re-opening and have mentioned the need for it countless times in the House of Commons and also met with and lobbied Transport Ministers and rail organisations on several occasions.
For the first time in 50 years, I successfully managed to get Grove Station on a list of stations that would be considered for Government funding. While we were not successful in the most recent round of funding (only 13/89 proposals were), the Department of Transport did say that we made a strong case for the scheme in the context of expected growth, and they were impressed with the level of local support from both residents and business. I will keep going until we are successful!
I launched a petition to re-open Grove Station that received over 2,100 signatures, with the final signature provided by Andy Holding of the Wantage and Grove Station Supporters Group, which I have now presented to Parliament and the Department for Transport.
I will now be meeting with the Rail Minister to make the case to him again.
You can see more about my campaign by clicking on the links below.
