New Castleford railway bridge scheme gets £5m funding boost
The new bridge would include pedestrian footpaths and cycleways
Plans to build a new railway bridge in Castleford as part of a wider regeneration project is set to receive a boost of more than £5m.
Wakefield Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) are working in partnership to deliver a scheme designed to improve journeys into the town.
When completed, it is hoped the Castleford Growth Corridor scheme will connect the town centre and Ferry Fryston via a new continuous, largely traffic-free route for people walking and cycling.
The route covers large areas of brownfield land, including the former Hickson and Welch chemical plant site and Wheldale Colliery, which have been earmarked for around 1,500 new homes.
Proposals include a new bridge over the railway on Wheldon Road, which the council granted planning permission for in December 2024.
Other plans include narrowing Aire Street, introducing new crossings to improve safety, resurfacing all carriageways affected by the scheme and improving traffic flow along Aire Street.
The council’s cabinet members have been asked to accept an additional £5.7m of WYCA funding for the project.
A report stated that accepting the funding would bring WYCA’s total contribution to £15.4m, which was the amount required to deliver the scheme.
The document said: “One of the main components of the scheme is a new bridge over the railway, which is considered a necessity for pedestrians and cyclists given that the existing bridge sits between two tight bends and has no footways.“
Failure to accept the funding would mean returning the funding that has already been allocated to the project and it would mean that the costs incurred to date, which includes around £1.4m for land acquisition and £200,000 for demolition, would have been abortive.”
WYCA approved a full business case to deliver the scheme in March this year.Accepting the funding would also enable the council to start the procurement process for a construction contractor, the report said.
Senior councillors will consider the recommendation at a meeting on July 21.