Yahoo News Andy Street makes Aston Villa and Witton station pledge as taskforce proposed
Andy Street has pledged to deliver an upgraded station at Witton in time for Euro 2028. Villa Park has been picked as one of ten venues to feature games in a tournament jointly hosted by the UK and Ireland.
Wembley, the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Man City’s Etihad, the new Everton Stadium, St James’ Park, Hampden Park in Glasgow, Dublin’s Aviva Stadium and Casement Park in Belfast will also stage matches.
As ever transport links will be key and Aston Villa are currently looking at schemes to make travel from the city centre easier for supporters, with the club recently launching a trial shuttle bus until the end of the season.
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The future of Witton railway station has been on the agenda for several years now amid complaints of overcrowding and lengthy waiting times, with plans for a big redevelopment emerging in December.
Improvements will include new passenger ramps to both platforms to increase queuing capacity after matches, a new pedestrian and cyclist subway under the line at Station Road, while there will also be wider and deeper platforms to allow more people to queue for bigger and longer trains.
And West Midlands Mayor Street, a Villa fan, has underlined his commitment to that and revealed a Matchday Travel Taskforce, which he hopes will benefit not just the Claret & Blues but Birmingham City, West Brom, Wolves, Walsall and Coventry City.
He said: “The West Midlands has always been one of football’s heartlands with three of the original league clubs based right here. Our region has huge, famous clubs with massive fan bases, supported by a vibrant pyramid of teams going right down to Sunday league action.
“I think that football fans here are tired of being wrongly overshadowed by teams in London, Manchester and Liverpool – but many of our big clubs now have new ownership who are showing real ambition, on the pitch and off it.
“It’s an exciting time to be a footie fan in the West Midlands. We have the clubs, tradition, support and ambition to be a real football superpower, and I am determined to play my part to make that happen.
“But while the clubs can take charge of what happens on the pitch, I want to help ensure that the fans get the best experience possible getting to and from games – that’s the idea behind my Matchday Travel Taskforce.”
The Taskforce will bring together Transport for West Midlands, transport operators, councils, and supporter groups to find ways to improve travel to and from games, increase the frequency of matchday services, and for cup matches in places like London ensure operators put on services to get fans home after games.
It will also focus on reducing congestion and managing parking around stadiums on matchdays, working with councils and clubs, to provide park & ride shuttle buses.
