I am delighted to see that the work has begun on extending Platforms 1 and 2 at Radlett Station. This is part of the Thameslink programme (total cost £6 billion!) and will enable the new 12 car trains being built by Siemens to stop at Radlett.
My delight is particularly because I personally spent some 15 years making sure this would happen. The original Thameslink 2000 project, started in the early 1980s and due for completion by the year 2000, left Radlett out. Having noticed this I pursued the powers that be for literally years to find out why (there was no reason – I am still convinced it was an error which they simply refused to admit) and to put us into the programme. Finally the day came when I was summoned to meet the junior railway Minister and explained it to him and he winked and said he would “see what he would do”. Then, some months later Radlett suddenly appeared in the project plans…
Because trains will now be able to stop at Radlett this means that we will in future (from 2014/15) have a number of new destinations from here, including South Coast towns like Eastbourne. The original plans would have meant such services leaving St Albans and passing through Radlett without stopping until they reached Elstree!
