Solar power lights up Whittlesea railway station

A Fenland railway station has improved its carbon footprint and boosted passenger safety

after having new solar-powered lights installed.

As the dark nights draw in, passengers at Whittlesea Station are benefitting from new LED

‘cat eyes’ powered entirely by the sun.

A footpath between the station entrance on Station Road and Platform 2 used to be dark

and unlit at night, but now 70 solar-powered road studs have created an illuminated

walkway, providing a clear and defined guide of the path ahead.

The £15,500 project has been funded by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined

Authority and is part of the Whittlesea Station improvement works being driven by Fenland

District Council on behalf of the Hereward Community Rail Partnership.

The lighting upgrade is also the first in a range of short, medium and long term regeneration

projects designed to improve Manea, March and Whittlesea stations, to which the Combined

Authority has invested £9 million.

Councillor David Oliver, Fenland District Council's portfolio holder for transport, said: “This

lighting scheme was one of the top requests from passengers using the station, so it’s great

news that it has now been implemented, and good timing with the shorter days now upon us.

“The LED lights are far more cost effective and environmentally friendly than the option of

street lighting whilst increasing the feeling of safety amongst passengers using the footpath.”

Mayor of the Combined Authority, James Palmer, said: “This much-needed improvement to

Whittlesea station is just one of a pipeline of upgrades for stations in Fenland, including

March and Manea, as part of a £9 million package of funding from the Combined Authority.

This funding will help redress years of underinvestment in our Fenland stations.

“The overall aim is to regenerate these three stations to increase passenger use and make

them more accessible to local residents, businesses and tourists. We need to make public

transport a more attractive option for people and reduce pressure on our roads, but that

won’t happen without investment. Further developments like extending the platforms at

Whittlesea and Manea, installing ticket machines, improved car and cycle parking, and

waiting shelters will all follow as part of the package of improvements.

“These upgrades are coupled with a strong campaign to increase the capacity and frequency

of service in Fenland. That includes pressing to accelerate the delivery hourly instead of two-

hourly stops at Whittlesea, March and Manea on Greater Anglia’s Ipswich to Peterborough

service. Together with local councillors and North East Cambridgeshire MP Steve Barclay,

I’m also pressing for later running trains back to Fenland stations from Cambridge, so people

can enjoy evening entertainment while still returning home by rail.

“Improvements like this cost-efficient and effective lighting upgrade at Whittlesea are a

tangible example of our investment taking effect, and in direct response to what local

passengers are telling us they want.”

Paul Haynes, Greater Anglia’s Community Partnerships Manager, said: “We would like to

thank the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority, the Hereward CRP and

Fenland District Council for funding this project, which will make a difference to rail

passengers using the station.

“At Greater Anglia we are working on a number of environmentally friendly projects including

fitting LED lighting, using solar power and creating bee-friendly gardens. This project at

Whittlesea will help us further to reduce our carbon footprint, create a more pleasant

atmosphere for our customers and improve safety and security.”

North East Cambridgeshire MP Steve Barclay added: “I am delighted that these much

needed improvements are being implemented at Whittlesea Train Station which will make

the footpath safer for passengers using the service. Improving transport links for constituents

in North East Cambridgeshire is an area I have lobbied for since I was first elected and it is

good to see Fenland District Council and the Combined Authority invest in our rail stations,

with a package of developments scheduled across Whittlesea, March and Manea.”

A new ticket machine and information point has also been installed at Whittlesea Station by

Greater Anglia which will become operational in the coming weeks.

The machine will offer passengers 24-hour live help – if people have a query while using the

new machines, or are not sure what to do, they can press a button which will put them

straight through to a real person who can help them buy tickets and find the best fares.

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