The campaign to reopen St Clears railway station has taken a step closer to reality.  It has been chosen by the Department of Transport as one of four station reopening bids out of 12 to go through to the next level.

Simon Hart MP has been working with the town council in its bid to get the station reopened. 

“I am delighted to hear that the St Clears bid was considered strong enough,” said Mr Hart.

“It was chosen because it’s in the village and because there is a gap in the rail provision in this area.”

The campaign to reopen the station has been running for decades.  It was closed in 1964 and there has been a sustained effort to reopen it since the 1970s.

Mr Hart wrote to the Welsh Secretary of State Alun Cairns earlier this summer to lobby for the station to be considered for reopening.  It had made it on to a shortlist of 12 in the country for consideration but then everything went ominously quiet.

“I wrote to the Secretary of State to try to chivvy things along, there was a fear that the whole issue was being swept under the carpet.

“The feasibility study was carried out in 2015 but after making it through to Stage 2 it seemed to get stuck in limbo.  Mr Cairns pledged to make sure that the Department for Transport, which is considering the bids, did consider the St Clears bid.

“I am delighted that seven weeks after I wrote, this news has come through.”

Mr Hart is now writing to Transport Minister Grant Shapps to make the case for St Clears.

“It’s full steam ahead for the community and I will continue to do all that I can to try to make this a reality,” he added.