Thatcham Bridge: The ongoing saga of ‘commuter misery’
For never was a story of more woe, than this of Thatcham and her bridge.
Calls for a bridge over Thatcham Level Crossing have gone unheard for decades.
Commuters have spent countless hours waiting at the barriers of the notorious ‘southern crossing’, leaving many still asking: will a bridge ever be built?
Thatcham Level Crossing currently sees around 140 rail movements daily and is used by around 9,800 vehicles and 450 pedestrians on an average weekday.
It is closed longer than other level crossings, with staff previously reporting an average wait time of 10 to 15 minutes – sometimes a lot longer for those at the back of queues.
How are waiting times controlled at Thatcham Level Crossing?
Newbury MP Lee Dillon recently requested a meeting with the rail minister and has tabled a written Parliamentary question to press the Secretary of State for Transport on this issue.
He told newburytoday: “This is a big strategic issue for the Newbury constituency, and I’ll be getting across to the rail minister just how much of a priority it is for local residents and how much better it would be for the environment too.
“The key issue is going to be funding it. We’ve seen the Labour Government strip back some big infrastructure projects, so we really need to see what the Chancellor will put in her budget for local infrastructure projects.
“I don’t think it necessarily has to be where the level crossing is. I think you could look into the industrial state.”
But calls to build a bridge here are nothing new.
End ‘Commuter Misery’
Former Newbury MP Laura Farrispreviously endorsed the construction of a bridge over the railway line to solve delays.
In 2015, Network Rail and West Berkshire Council told newburytoday a bridge would cost in excess of £20m and would need to be funded by central Government or a developer.
Since then, a planning application has come forward from The Colthrop Village Consortium to build 950 homes south of the railway line and Kennet and Avon Canal, which came with the promise of a bridge.
In 2018, West Berkshire Council said it was “exploring the possibility of a bridge” as a part of its transport plan.
And in 2021, Network Rail said it supported the 950-home plan, if it included the bridge.
The proposed bridge would come off a new roundabout at Pipers Way and into roads at the housing development leading onto Crookham Hill.
Going back further, in 1974, discussions were held between Berkshire County Council, British Rail and British Waterways regarding a bridge over the railway and canal.
Thatcham’s bridge is almost the stuff of legend now. And like all legends, the facts aren’t always clear.
One persistent story is that the Americans offered to pay for a bridge when they were running Thatcham Army Ordnance Depot, now the Kennet Heath housing estate, located in Station Road.
Thatcham historian Nick Young weighed in on this theory: “I have heard the story of the Americans offering to pay or build a bridge over the railway so many times before.
“Some say it was in the 1970s, some have other dates.
“I have spoken to personnel that were at the Depot, RAF Greenham Common, various council staff and councillors but so far all I have is hearsay.
“I have not found anything in writing and official.”
The idea to build a bridge resurfaced again to solve the traffic woes across Thatcham throughout the 1980s which, again, included a potential bridge coming off Pipers Lane.
In 1987, the new £177,000 station reopened after a six-month project.
Improvements included a new red-brick ticket office, footbridge (to avoid pedestrian delays), one resurfaced platform and platform waiting shelters.
Fast-forward to the late 1990s and early 2000s.
As reported in the Newbury Weekly News, West Berkshire Council scrapped plans to make developers build a bridge as part of the 500-plus homes planned for Kennet Heath as it couldn’t afford to pay its £10m share of the project – a ‘wasted opportunity’ and one of Thatcham’s last chances to build a bridge, some have argued.
Instead, developer Redrow Homes spent £1.5m on building a new roundabout in Station Road and other traffic schemes to reduce traffic congestion in the area.
A Bridge Too Far?
One of the barriers in securing an appropriate location for a bridge has always been the flood risks in the area.
And that’s not all. Besides cost and flooding, residents of Crookham Hill and Thornford Road feared a bridge might generate an increased volume of traffic travelling towards Basingstoke, plus more motorists travelling north across the bridge to reach the A4 and A339, causing further delays.
Not to mention the logistical issues a bridge would cause. Where would the new bridge go?
Would the roads southbound be adapted or widened to accommodate the increased traffic? Would these include footpaths?
Can the existing infrastructure continue to cope without change?
Origins of the Station
The first station in Thatcham was built in 1844 as part of the Berks and Hants Line to Hungerford.
It was built so far south from the town centre due to opposition from landowner Miss Fromont, of Thatcham Farm, a former stagecoach proprietor.
The early station was only a wooden structure. Passengers on the Newbury platform were exposed and got soaked when it rained
In 1850, a goods shed was built as goods traffic was introduced after passenger traffic.
Brick buildings replaced the old timber structure when Messrs Goodchilds of Reading won the contract around 1893.
In 1965, the original station and footbridge was demolished by Lord Beeching and later rebuilt several times.
“Originally, there would have been only a river here, a single bridge crossing it,” added Dr Young.
“An additional bridge was added to cross the canal when the Kennet Navigation came along, opening in 1723.
“It was extended later to the Avon Navigation, becoming what we know today as the Kennet and Avon Canal (completed in 1810).
“The area became known as Longbridge. Those bridges have been rebuilt several times, the last I believe was in 1989.”