News Release : 18 October 2005

ASSEMBLY CALLS FOR CROSSRAIL TO READING

The South East England Regional Assembly is calling for Crossrail to be extended westwards from Maidenhead to Reading. This extension is identified as a regional priority in the Assembly's Regional Transport Strategy and draft South East Plan.

The Assembly's Regional Planning Committee stressed that Reading, as one of the regional hubs*, is a continuous focus for growth and must be supported with adequate transport connections. The Committee strongly supports Crossrail but wants to see Reading as its western terminus.

The Regional Planning Committee is reaffirming this view in response to the Government's consultation on safeguarding land between Reading and Maidenhead. The Committee is urging the Department for Transport to implement the safeguarding order.

Cllr Christine Field, Chairman of the Assembly's Regional Planning Committee said: "The Committee welcomes Crossrail but it is vital for the west of the region that it reaches Reading. With the ongoing growth in housing and economic development, we have to get the right infrastructure in the right place. Reading's connection to Crossrail is essential if we are successfully to integrate strategic and urban rail services across London, the South East and beyond."

*The Regional Transport Strategy identified regional hubs as areas where a range of multimodal transport services supports the concentration of land uses and economic activity.

Contact

Lesley van Dijk, PR Executive - 01483 555223

Heather Bolton, Head of Communications - 01483 555220

Notes to editors:

1. The South East England Regional Assembly is the "voluntary regional chamber" for the South East. It was established in January 1999 to give a representative voice to the South East region which covers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East and West Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, and Surrey.
2. The Regional Assembly is made up of 112 members including elected councillors nominated by the region's local authorities and 37 representatives from other sectors of the community (including business, trades unions, education, housing, health, sports, culture, tourism, faith groups, environmental, community and voluntary organisations) as well as the New Forest National Park Authority..
3. The Assembly has three areas of core business:
1. It is the representative voice of the South East, engaging and representing its member organisations and, through them, the wider public.
2. The Assembly has a specific role under the Regional Development Agencies' Act 1998 to ensure the accountability of the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) to the region.
3. The Assembly has been the Regional Planning Body for the South East since April 2001. It has responsibility for proposing strategic planning and transport policies to Government.

Last updated: 21 August 2007