The Department for Transport has announced funding of £400,000 to kickstart the master planning of a new train station in Bradford to improve connectivity, benefitting education and business in the UK's 'City of Culture'.

The plan was first revealed last month as part of the government's launch of Network North – a £36 billion long-term plan to improve the country's transport across roads, buses and railways, through unprecedented levels of investment.

The work will consider how the new station can best support regeneration in the surrounding area and maximise its potential to create new homes, jobs and local economic growth – as well as significantly improving transport links and cutting journey times.

Once complete, the findings will form part of a wider business case for the project which will include details on the proposed location and delivery date for the station.

Rail Minister, Huw Merriman, said: "I have championed the case for a new railway station in Bradford for a long time and the funding announced today will make this commitment one step closer to becoming a reality.


"Bradford is soon to become the's 'City of Culture' and our scheme to deliver a brand new station and railway line will help attract tourism, unlock access to neighbouring cities and provide the area with the huge regeneration opportunities it deserves to boost connectivity and economic growth."

The station will be delivered as part of the government's Network North pledge to connect major cities in the North of England with more frequent trains, increased capacity and faster journeys.

On top of the £400,000 announced today for regeneration plans in the city, a total of £2 billion will be invested to build the station and a new line to deliver a significantly faster, 30-minute journey to Manchester via Huddersfield.

Councillor Susan Hinchcliffe, leader of Bradford Council, said: "It is good to see this moving forward, everyone has worked so hard for so long to get this progressed. Improving connectivity for Bradford to the rest of the North is so important to enable greater investment, jobs and opportunities. There can be no successful North without Bradford being successful."

Today's announcement comes on top of a further £2.5 billion Network North pledge to support the West Yorkshire mass transit system which will improve connections between Leeds and Bradford, Huddersfield and Halifax. It will mean Leeds is no longer the biggest European city without a mass-transit system, with up to 7 lines potentially created as part of a transformed network.

In addition to this, the government continues to push forward plans to electrify the Calder Valley Line between Bradford and Leeds – backed by £500 million – to cut journey times by around 40% from 20 minutes to as low as 12 minutes.