Whitemoor Commended

March 3rd 2005

Whitemoor Depot is a big hit with the august Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI).

Network Rail, Cambridgeshire County Council and Fenland District Council have been commended at the Royal Town Planning Institute’s achievement awards for ‘Bringing the railway back to March.’ This is the development of the Whitemoor distribution centre in March, Cambridgeshire.

Peter Heubeck, Network Rail’s Head of Infrastructure Materials, who represented the company at the award ceremony, said, ‘We were absolutely delighted to have been commended at these prestigious awards for ‘Bringing the railway back to March’.

‘The Whitemoor project was vitally important for the increased maintenance and renewal of the railway in the east of England. It was successfully delivered in such a short space of time, which is testament to the hard work of everyone involved and the fantastic support from the local authorities and community.’

The Whitemoor project was delivered within quite challenging timescales. The success of the project depended on a new efficient planning process implemented by Network Rail and the local authorities which resolved issues like rare plants and wildlife protection. Impact on the countryside, and local residents - including top security prison HMP Whitemoor - had to be taken into account.

RTPI judges commended the project, particularly the close working partnership between all parties and the involvement of the local community. ‘We were impressed with the positive attitude of county and district council planners, which was matched by Network Rail’s sympathetic approach to environmental and amenity concerns,’ the RTPI said.

Says Mark Vigor, Head of Strategic Planning for Cambridgeshire County Council, ‘The whole team is thrilled with the commendation. The scheme has brought benefits at a local, national and even international level. On a local level it has created around 43 new jobs and brought with it a link road which will reduce the heavy goods traffic travelling through residential areas.’
Whitemoor was once the site of the country’s largest railway marshalling yard and a major employer in Cambridgeshire. In 1990 the yard was declared surplus to operating requirements and closed.

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