St James’s Market, 22 March, 2021.
I, my photographer, and just one other journalist are in attendance to hear what Bradford Council Leader Susan Hinchcliffe has to say. But what’s about to be presented could be revolutionary for Bradford.
Henri Murison is there, then-director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, and Hinchcliffe is joined by Professor Zahir Irani, a major advocate for a new city-centre rail hub.
Before long, Hinchcliffe makes her revelation: ambitious plans for a new station in Bradford, right there, at the historic St James’s Market. This scheme, she says, could allow the North to become as “economically vibrant as the south” and increase the city’s economy by a third.
Already owned by the council, the 6.6-acre market site was fit to burst anyway; new sites will be looked at for the various traders. Most importantly, this prospective new location would allow for an east-west through-station and free Bradford from the shackles of Bradford Interchange’s terminus. Connected to a mainline Northern Powerhouse Rail route, journey times would be slashed to seven minutes travelling to Leeds and just 22 minutes to Manchester.
But, as it turns out, St James’s Market is the dead end.
A short and snappier one for you today but plenty of interesting insight, and forthwright words from rail engineer Gareth Dennis.
We know a lot has been written already on this, but we think this one goes a little deeper, with Dennis explaining exactly why he thinks this is a lot of fuss about a... grand refurbishment rather than being transformational.
If anything it's worth it just to see the interactive graph Brad spent hours fiddling with.
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