There’s a lot going on in Chelmsford. Between horse racing and hosting concerts, the racecourse is always busy, and it’s a huge hub for people who want to work in London without paying £1,000-plus a month for a box room. Because of that, its train station is getting overcrowded and no longer fit for purpose – which is why they’re getting a brand new one very soon.
A whopping £218 million has gone into building a new station, Beaulieu Park, and regenerating its surrounding areas in order to give the eastern town of Chelmsford a new lease of life. The station is currently in its final stages of construction, due to open later this year, and we just got brand new footage of what to expect when it does open its doors.
As well as its three platforms, Beaulieu Park will come equipped with loads of parking spaces for cars and bikes, a bus interchange, and routes for pedestrians and cyclists to access it, making it easy to get to however you travel.
It will ease pressure on the existing Chelmsford station, giving locals more options and less crowded platforms. On top of all of that, it’s the first station to be built on the Eastern Mainline in over 100 years. Once it’s up and running, passengers will be able to travel to London Liverpool Street from Beaulieu Park in less than 40 minutes.
Things have been going very smoothly, and the station is now reaching completion ahead of schedule, which is arguably a more historical achievement than anything else. Next up is the wider regeneration project, which will see the construction of new roads and nearly 14,000 homes. This will take a bit longer to complete.
Local councillors have described the project as ‘really well thought out’ and having ‘a real impact on the local area’. The leader of Chelmsford council, Stephen Robinson, noted that it is ‘a really important part of creating not just houses, but a new community in the north-east corner of Chelmsford’.
You can have a look at the latest CG videos of the station on National Rail’s website here – it gives you a good idea of what to expect when it does open this autumn. There’s still no specific date scheduled, but things are running ahead of the initial winter 2025 goal. Let’s hope there’s no last minute hiccups and the people of Chelmsford get access as soon as possible.
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