Pineapple Road wins vote to be name of new station
A new railway station in Birmingham is to be called Pineapple Road.
It is one of three new stops to be created in south Birmingham under a £61m West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) project.
The name, which reflects the street where the station will be opened, was chosen following a public vote.
Almost 6,000 residents gave their views on naming the two railway stations set to be built on the Camp Hill Line in south Birmingham.
Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) and West Midlands Rail Executive (WMRE) said they were inundated last month after asking for help from local residents to name their stations ahead of full construction beginning this November.
Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street has confirmed the stations shall be called Moseley Village and Pineapple Road. The name of the third Camp Hill Line station, Kings Heath, had already been settled.
The Mayor, who chairs the WMCA, said: “It’s brilliant to see that the naming of these stations has ignited such public interest. It’s a clear sign of just how keen local residents are to see this line reopened and why I have made it such a top priority.
“My task in selecting the winning station names was made very easy as Pineapple Road and Moseley Village emerged the runaway popular choices. And so as we bring these stations to life, I hope the community will feel a genuine sense of pride as they see the signs for the names they’ve chosen going up and train services running from the end of next year.”
Cllr Ian Ward, WMCA portfolio holder for transport and leader of Birmingham City Council, said: “People have long campaigned to get these stations rebuilt and reopened to passenger services so I am not surprised so many came forward to help us decide what to call them.
“We are asking people to reduce car use to ease congestion, tackle pollution and meet our climate change targets and so projects like this are vital to provide them with sustainable alternatives.
“Now we can get on with the next stage of finalising the designs and getting construction under way later this year.”
The WMCA is providing £36m funding, with £20m from the Department for Transport (DfT) and the remaining £5m from Birmingham City Council’s clean air zone fund.
Earlier this year VolkerFitzpatrick was awarded the contract to design and build the three stations. Rail industry partners in the project include Network Rail and West Midlands Railway.
