FORMER Rail Minister Andrew Jones praised work which could lead to the re-opening of Wellington railway station.

Work has been underway for some time looking into the possible recommissioning of a station in the town, which was closed in 1964 after the Beeching Report.

Recently, Taunton Deane MP Rebecca Pow, who supports the plan, met with Mr Jones to inform him about the strong interest in the project and the positive progress being made by the group looking into the scheme.

Ms Pow will be meeting new Rail Minister, Paul Maynard, and Secretary of State for Transport, Grant Shapps, in September to further make the case for establishing a metro-style station in Wellington.

Wellington Station first opened on May 1, 1843.

“I had an extremely positive conversation with the now former Rail Minister following the assessment carried out locally which confirmed that, subject to topographical, structural and ground investigation surveys, a new station can in principle be accommodated at the site," Ms Pow said.

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"He was seriously impressed with the progress being made by our stakeholder group - in particular our collaborative approach.

"Since becoming the MP for Taunton Deane in 2015 I have been pushing this idea locally with others and in Westminster and I look forward to meeting with the new Rail Minister and the Secretary of State for Transport, Grant Shapps to continue to progress our case to re-open Wellington Railway Station.

"A metro-style station in Wellington would reduce traffic; enable local residents to get to Taunton and Bridgwater more easily; to reach London more quickly, as well as other destinations in the South West and right across the UK, all opening up new opportunities.

"I look forward to meeting with the Devon and Somerset Railway Group in September to update them on the conversations I have had in Westminster.”

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In a letter to Ms Pow following the meeting, the former Minister praised the “collaborative approach being taken by the local Councils and the LEP to jointly fund development work” and was encouraged to hear from Ms Pow that GWR is already involved in the work on developing plans for a new station.