£8.6 million upgrade planned for Theale Railway Station

Theale Railway station is to be upgraded following an investment of £8.6m which has agreed by local partners.

The station will benefit from a new pedestrian bridge and lifts, a cycle hub, electric vehicle charging points and a significant number of additional car parking spaces.  

The plans will also see the new ticket office brought into use and deliver new waiting shelters for passengers.  Initial plans also include taking the opportunity to generate energy through the installation of solar panels. GWR estimate 114 panels would enable the station to become carbon neutral from an electricity perspective.

The project will be funded with the recently announced £4m by the Thames Valley Berkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (TVB LEP) investment of Local Growth Funds; £4m from Network Rail; £450,000 from West Berkshire Council specifically ringfenced for Theale station plus a further £20,000 from West Berkshire Council via other successful funding bids.

Jeanette Clifford, West Berkshire’s Executive Member for highways and Transport said: “We are delighted that this opportunity has opened up and that we are in a position to be able to take it forward. It will have a powerful effect on the station, enabling it to become a significant interchange and Park & Rail site and also the area around it. This investment will help to provide the long term benefits of more jobs and housing which are vital to grow and to future proof economic prosperity.”

The upgrade work will begin within the next 2 years.