Yesterday (Thursday) I put on a hi-vis safety jacket and some trousers, pulled on a pair of steel toe-capped wellies, and put on a hard hat to take an exclusive look behind the scenes at the site that will become Wixams’ new train station in 2026.
While much of the site is currently just a load of mud, there’s been quite a lot done since work began in September, with railway engineers ‘levelling out’ the ground and getting it ready to receive track that will pass alongside brand new platforms on the Midland Main Line.
Just a few days ago, Jon Shortland, chief officer for planning, infrastructure and economic growth, said that work is “progressing on programme” and that it’s ‘on track’ for “substantial completion being achieved in June 2026, with entry into service later that year.”
Read: Wixams station on track to be completed in summer 2026
Looking across what is essentially a quagmire at the moment, it seems hard to believe a station will soon be here.
As someone who’s proud to put up a shelf that doesn’t fall down a few months later, thinking about the logistics and planning needed to make sure the current new tracks that will serve Wixams match up with the existing main line track really does hurt.
But with the help of some very patient rail engineers, who are considerably smarter than the people they were talking to, they described what the site would look like and where everything would go, and a picture formed in my mind.
With smiles and a “hello” from all the workers we passed on the site, it’s clear they love doing what they’re doing and it’s great to see a hive of activity and hear the roar of diggers and trucks moving earth, a sound that’s music to the ears of those living in Wixams.
Not least of all the three ward councillors who have been listening to local people’s frustrations about the station and its delays for quite some time.
“Having campaigned for this for so many years, when it was just a concept and one that some people felt would never materialise, it’s really good to see actual progress being made on this long overdue piece of Wixams infrastructure,” said Cllr Graeme Coombes (Conservative)
“It’s thanks to the people of Wixams who never gave up hope and kept pressing me, the developers, Network Rail, the Council and other local politicians to make this happen, that we are finally seeing real concrete progress.”
Joining Cllr Coombes on the visit were his Conservative ward colleagues Cllr Frost and Cllr Spice, and all three seemed jubilant at being able to see the long-awaited station finally getting some traction.
Long time coming
The history of Wixams’ station goes back almost 20 years.
As a young(er) reporter in 2005, I broadcast stories about how Bedford ‘could’ be getting a new station thanks to a developer who had plans to build a new town with 4,500 homes just outside of Bedford.
These plans were approved in 2006 and building started in 2007. Hundreds of homes were snapped up ‘off-plot’ almost instantly with many saying the reason they were buying was because of the station.
People waited and waited. Some even moved away as the promise of the station by 2013 did not materialise.
Then in January 2022, a preferred design of the station was revealed and the former council administration earmarked a completion date of 2024 for the station.
Read: Preferred design of Wixams train station revealed with 2024 completion still ‘on track’
But more delays meant the station’s opening was pushed back further with the final agreement between the council and Network Rail finally being signed earlier this year.
Read: Wixams Station agreement due to be signed this week
I’ll leave the politicians to debate about who’s to blame for the delays, that’s for the council chamber. But regardless of the delays, things are finally happening and despite the cold, wet and windy weather in Wixams yesterday, there were smiles all around.
To mark the occasion, Mayor Tom Wotton (Conservative) ‘turned the first sod’ and helped cut a ribbon to officially open the works.
“This is a fantastic day for Bedford Borough,” he said. “We’re cutting the ribbon on work starting at the train station and this is years in the planning. I’m just so glad and it’s something that’s just so wonderful.”
While on the site, much talk turned to concerns over how many people may use the new station.
Wixams Station has always been billed as a new station for the whole of Bedford Borough and it’s likely many south of the river or west of the town will use it instead of the current mainline station on Ashburnham Road, Bedford.
All ward councillors said they’re going to be looking at ways to make sure there’s enough parking and that residential roads are protected from station users parking their cars on them.
But the Mayor says, despite these concerns, the progress with the building is great news for Bedford.
“I think everybody knows about this train station now. It’s on the main line and it’s really exciting for Bedford Borough and the whole county because we’re right in the middle here and we’re not far from the possible Universal theme park.”
In 2026 when the station finally opens (fingers crossed) it’ll be 20 years since this reporter has been following this story. When that first train stops at the new Wixams platforms it really will be a moment to celebrate.
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