Beaulieu: Work starts on second Chelmsford railway station

The project is costing £160m; £124m of which is coming from central government

The construction of the first train station along the Great Eastern Railway in 100 years has begun in earnest.

Contractors have started work on the foundations of the £160m project at Beaulieu in north Chelmsford, Essex.

The new site is expected to open by the end of 2025.

Chelmsford's Conservative MP Vicky Ford said it was "absolutely amazing" to see the ongoing work while on a site visit on Friday.

"This is so exciting - some people in Chelmsford say they have been waiting 40 years for Chelmsford's second railway station," she said.

Infrastructure company J Murphy & Sons Ltd started work on site in January

Lesley Wagland joined other local politicians at a site visit on Friday

Network Rail, which is leading on the project, says the existing city centre station is the busiest two-platform station outside of London in the UK, serving eight million passengers per year.

There are 14,000 homes in Beaulieu and another 10,600 homes planned, along with proposals for a second secondary school and three primary schools.

The station will include:

• Three platforms

• Step-free access to all platforms via two lifts

• Parking for 700 cars

• A bus interchange

• About 500 spaces for cycle parking and storage

Lesley Wagland, Essex County Council's Conservative cabinet member for economic renewal, infrastructure and planning, said the project demonstrated the local authority's "commitment to sustainable travel".

Chelmsford City Council's Liberal Democrat leader Stephen Robinson said: "The new station will help to reduce congestion on our roads, pollution in our air and give residents more options when they want to travel."

The new station aims to take pressure of Chelmsford city centre's station, which is one of the busiest in the UK

Network Rail says the new station will include baby-change toilet facilities

Network Rail says passengers will be able to get to London in fewer than 40 minutes from the new site

There is separate construction work ongoing to build a new bypass road at Beaulieu, due to be completed in 2026.

Infrastructure company J Murphy & Sons Ltd started work on the railway station foundations in January.