'Neglected land gives visitors poor first impression of Harborough' says MP
Harborough’s MP has called for action to be taken to improve some derelict strips of land near to Market Harborough railway station, saying it gives a poor first impression to visitors.
During a recent meeting with senior Network Rail managers Neil O’Brien MP expressed concerns about two derelict strips of land, owned by the company, which sit alongside the station.
One is a former car park and the other is a former works compound used during the station improvement works.
“These two strips of land are the first thing people see when they step off the train,” Mr O’Brien said.
“Right now, they look scruffy and neglected. That’s not the welcome we want for visitors to Market Harborough.”
To help improve the area, Neil has offered to connect Network Rail with Harborough in Bloom, a group of volunteers who work to improve the visual appearance of the area.
"We are in a mad situation where on one side of the path there are lots of nice trees that have been planted by Harborough in Bloom because that side is owned by East Midlands Railway," the MP added.
"But they haven't been able to go and do the same thing on the other side of the path because that's owned by Network Rail, so it's just a bunch of churned up ugly ground and some big boxes.
"I'm hopeful that following our meeting we can resolve this and make the whole area look a lot nicer so that it can be a much better gateway to our town."
During his meeting, Mr O’Brien also highlighted his opposition to a recent Government decision to indefinitely pause the electrification of the Midland Mainline.
In July, the Department for Transport announced that the electrification of the line north of South Wigston in Leicestershire would be put on hold, to allow funds to be focused on other transport schemes.
“Stopping the electrification of the Midland Main Line is the wrong decision," Mr O’Brien said.
“A huge amount of work has gone into this project and abandoning it now is incredibly short-sighted.
“Our line has always been at the back of the queue when it comes to investment, and this is a further kick in the teeth.
“Network Rail have been clear - money has been spent, progress has been made and unwinding all of that will cost a significant amount of money.
“It simply makes no sense.”