A YEAR’S preliminary work was launched this week when Thurrock Council and c2c announced their Memorandum of Agreement on work needing to be done to improve rail services for passengers in the borough.
The rail company and the council have agreed “to work together to develop proposals for improvements to train services” in the borough.
The key improvements the extension of the new c2c Smart card to cover bus travel in Thurrock, developing a new station and shuttle bus service at Stanford-le-Hope, plans for a new station and pedestrian rail crossing at Grays, a new station at Purfleet, and replacing level crossings at Purfleet and East Tilbury.
The train operator and the local authority will work together to identify further funding to complete the delivery of these schemes, in addition to their own investment. The agreement was first developed during the franchise competition, which c2c’s “owning company” National Express won earlier this year.
Cllr John Kent, Leader of Thurrock Council, said: “This agreement is really good news for everyone who uses public transport in Thurrock and those who have to cross the lines whether on foot or in a vehicle.
“In particular I want to say thank you to c2c who showed tremendous faith in Thurrock and the council by signing up to this long before their own future was secure.
“We haven’t just left things for a year, we have been doing a great deal of preparatory work, but now we can ensure things start moving forward on all the projects.
“The idea of a smart card that works on c2c as well as Thurrock bus journeys is a tremendous plan and I want to see us meeting with all the public transport providers to take that forward as soon as possible,
“The building works at Grays, Stanford, East Tilbury and Purfleet will take more time and that’s as it should be. We need to make sure we have the right plan and all the necessary funding in place before the first shovel is dug into the ground.
Julian Drury, Managing Director of c2c, added: “We’re determined to deliver real improvements for local passengers, and our strong partnership with the council is crucial for that.
“We have already worked together to establish travel plans for every station in the borough, and we’re clear what we want to achieve over the coming years.”
