Cheadle and Gatley Lib Dems are moving
Graham, Tom and Ian
Your Lib Dem team for Cheadle West & Gatley Learn more
What were the local issues four decades ago?
Cheadle and Gatley Lib Dems are moving
Cheadle and Gatley Lib Dems are moving
What were the local issues four decades ago?
Cheadle and Gatley Lib Dems are moving
Travis Perkins to move away from Cheadle
by Lib Dem team on 19 February, 2015
Travis Perkins plan to move away from their current Cheadle site (off Lime Grove) towards the end of 2015, relocating to Sharston.
Although there have been lots of rumours flying around as to what might happen to the site, or what might already have been discussed, that’s really (as far as we know) all there is to tell at the moment.
It’s likely Travis Perkins will want to sell the site and no doubt get full commercial value for it, but they probably won’t do anything until they actually move out. TP haven’t approached the Council and there haven’t been any discussions yet about future uses for the site.
When TP get closer to moving off, the Lib Dem team will be pressing those sorts of discussions to take place – though of course any purchase would have to stack up commercially.
20 Comments
It will be a shame to see TP go from its current site as there has been a Merchant selling building products there as long as I can remember but I know Access for them is an issue and they deserve a medal for all the moaning they have received from the Local Residents.
Its an awkward site with pros and cons with great access to the train line .A fantastic site for a NEW train station with car parking.
Yes Iain, the station idea is a good one except that it replaces one commercial user accessing via the small adjacent roads, with another.
Unless the access could be from the entry on Brook Road just next to the Drill Hall, which would mean changing the direction of the one-way at the side of the Parish Church. Otherwise it would be horrendous for Lime Grove etc.
Affordable housing would be great, even sheltered housing.
Residents of sheltered housing would benefit by being really close to the village amenities. And they don’t all have cars, either, so the vehicle movements would be much reduced.
Being a regular customer of TP I have seen huge delivery trucks trying to access through Lime Grove. I am sure the residents will not miss this but in any event the traffic through housing or something like a station will increase .
Infrastructure issues with drainage of this site will be a problem and that is one reason why TP have not sold it earlier as it will affect commercial value.
Car Park for a train station good call.
Well I looks like this is a no brainer, train/tram station in the centre of the village – couldn’t be better. I’m sure the reduction in congestion in Cheadle residents who would use a station like this and sacrifice their cars would easily outweigh increases in traffic a local station would bring – don’t mess this opportunity up Lib Dems!
Agreed, with Cheadle and other suburbs getting busier the logical answer is for the council to develop this site under a CPO, perhaps in partnership with a commercial enterprise and make this into the much needed train station, retail, cafe etc. We don’t need more sheltered housing in a prime village centre location, develop the site into something that will brings jobs and people into the village, reduce congestion so that people working in the village have a proper, reliable public transport option …
The assumption seems to be that if the site is developed as a train station and car park that local people will arrive on foot but I don’t think that can be assumed. Such a development will also attract commuters from outside the area who will need long stay car parking. The problem as I see will be accurately forecasting demand for parking, so that it doesn’t spill over into the local area where parking is already stretched. As someone who has lived near a local station and car park, and seen the demand for parking from commuters grow and grow and the impact this has had on the local area, I think local residents would be rightly concerned about the site being developed into a station and car park.
Assuming the area is suitable for residential development, I think this would be the best long-term use of the site, and the one with the most manageable impact for local residents. Affordable housing would be good so that it’s not just people who can afford the big price tags who are able to live in the centre of Cheadle.
Spot on. This is a ridiculous idea without the provision for parking. And where in Cheadle is that possible
You need to move with the times I’m afraid to say, we’re in the 21st century now, and public transport links are more and more integral to today’s society – have you ever ventured outside Stockport? Cheadle is one of the last suburbs to suffer economic decline and perpetual laggard, until a village centre train/tram stop is provided. Like the other members say, Didsbury, Cheadle Hulme, Bramhall etc., they all have them except … Cheadle. If you don’t
Ole congestion then perhaps you’d be better moving away as the future of Greater Manchester will see a huge increase in people, jobs and congestion.
Station does it for me. The Didsbury village tram stop has no parking at all and that works fine.
Perfect central location shouldn’t require a car park or at best a small one.
If this goes ahead people of Cheadle remember who suggested this first.
I agree with Alan Gent’s comment about Didsbury Village metro station not having a car park. Cheadle does not need one either – better to have a small number of spaces for taxis to assist those with walking difficulties, and a dedicated taxi phone at the end of the platform. We would need a well-lit pedestrian tunnel under the track so that the taxi rank/pedestrian exit could be accessed from either platform. Perhaps there could be a gate near this tunnel onto the Alexandra hospital’s premises so that both staff and patients could access either platform without walking along Manchester Road and the High Street. This could be monitored from the hospital’s security system. Adjacent to the tunnel, a small newsstand/refreshment hut could bring in rental income and give the place a lived-in look, and contain a cctv camera sufficiently prominent to deter vandals but designed so as not to be an eyesore. Cheadle Civic Society could be a useful channel for input at the planning stage.
Gatley is saturated with commuters’ cars and the station is woefully inadequate to meet the demand for parking from commuters. Why would it be any different in Cheadle?
The tram stop at Parrs Wood has a very large car park. I imagine there isn’t one in Didsbury because there’s no where to put one, which may mean that it’s used more by local people who can get to it on foot. But if the site in Cheadle is developed as a station and car parking is provided, however limited, it will inevitably bring people in from outside the area, along with their cars.
Stuart I agree for people coming into Cheadle that taxis may be required but for outgoing passengers car parking is essential. Cheadle Civic society do a good job but this is one for professionals including Engineers Planners and the Rail Company.
Petronica this site is very big.
Yes I know the site as I have lived in the area for over 30 years and have used TP and its predecessor on many occasions over the years.
Looks like the people of Cheadle have this one decided. The tram stop in Didsbury does work fine, along with many others in greater Manchester. What is needed will be an adequate number of secure bike locks-ups to offer commuters options. We already have a lack of car parking spaces in the village, although Cheadle does have more space than many other neighbouring centres, nevertheless it is an extremely busy and thriving district centre with lots more retail units and businesses than the likes of Bramhall, Gatley, Didsbury and Cheadle Hulme, and with the impending development of Barnes hospital, the site surely has be developed into a train station no excuses. Talks with the Alex hospital are needed as they have the ex-coal yard on the other side of the track, which I’m pretty sure they would be interested in working with all parties as train line stop in Cheadle would be beneficial to their business. Likewise the new £11 million care home opposite would also appreciate additional public transport links into the village centre, for both visiting relatives and staff who require affordable public transport.
Converting the Travis Perkins site into a new tram/train station is a great idea. I would also work with Alexandra hospital so a new larger hospital-station car park could be built. This could connect to the car parks on both sides of the train line together if you were to connect it to Brook street. This way all of the cars wouldn’t be stuck waiting to get onto the high street but could drive back via Manchester road. Plus it could be used to build a new road towards the Barnes Hospital site if need be (which I might add has an empty field between the hospital and the Micker Brook which could be used for building some more houses or a new park or some new development to utilise this seemingly forgotten field).
Critical to this would be to build some of the new car park on the vacant site next to the hospital opposite the Ashlea pub. But some of this site could also be built upon such as an access ramp to the platforms or a retail unit.
Doing all this would seemingly solve Cheadle’s transport problems of no train or tram, and also give more car and bike parking spaces. It would also allow for some retail and housing units to be built on the TP and opposite-Ashlea sites, and help the hospital solve its car parking issues. It could also help encourage greater usage of the Drill hall and encourage the development of that vacant field between the Micker Brook and the hospital.
I really hope this opportunity isn’t wasted.
Is there anyone out there who doesn’t want a train station? This is an opportunity of a lifetime which will bring employment and trade to the area, reduce carbon footprint and bring Cheadle on par with other neighbouring suburbs, cant wait to see the plans!
Great responses from the people of Cheadle yet NO Comment from the COUNCILLORS. Come on Iain Join In the debate.
A station is a nice idea, but where’s the money coming from??
It would be part of a major transport project that would need funding from TfGM and the Government.