The Annual General Meeting for Stirchley Forum will take place on Monday 13th November from 7.30pm at the Stirchley Community Church.
On the agenda is a review of the year, a look at the accounts for 2022-23 and election of the Committee for 2023/4.
This will be followed by Stirchley resident Alan Bale telling the meeting about his time in the Canadian wilderness for the Channel 4 programme ‘Alone’.
Also, there will be information about a new community art project connected to the new Pineapple Road train station.
At last week’s Stirchley Ward meeting, convened by Councillor Mary Locke, there was a presentation from West Midlands Rail Executive updating on Pineapple Station. Many people asked for the presentation to be shared and so we have uploaded it here.
An unfortunate series of events means the Pineapple Road train station reopening to passengers will likely be delayed until the end of 2024.
An unstable wall that borders a locally listed building at Pineapple Road has had to be rebuilt brick by brick. Meanwhile, a previously undocumented Victorian well at the Kings Heath site, linked to the historic Highbury Hall, has meant a redesign of the area. Over in Moseley, badgers, who are protected species, have been discovered on the grounds and can only be moved at certain times of the year.
Despite these challenges, much of the structural work to prepare the site has now been completed at Kings Heath and Pineapple Road and the platforms are taking shape. Whilst the stations may not reopen until later, Transport for West Midlands have are of the view that most of construction work will be finished early next year.
Neil Gaskin, programme director for Network Rail’s Central Route, said: “These stations unlock the railway to three vibrant communities in Birmingham, which will bring benefits and opportunities to thousands of people and businesses. They will be worth the wait and we will continue to work with our partners to support them opening as soon as possible.”
Wet Midlands Rail Executive and principal contractor, VolkerFitzpatrick, are hosting a meeting on Wednesday 22nd March to talk about the work on Pineapple Road Station.
Pineapple Road station will provide faster, more reliable transport and reduce congestion and pollution. It will make it easier to travel for work, education, and leisure. The station will have 2 platforms, lifts, ticket machines, passenger help points, a pick and drop off area and secure cycle parking
There will be a closure of the railway line between 25th March to 3rd April to allow for 24-hour working on the new Pineapple Road station.
VolkerFitzpatrick will use this time to carry out work that can only be done while the railway line is closed. This includes things like as pouring concrete to create the platform foundations and starting to install platform units.
The closure of the line will also be an opportunity to remove significant volumes of excavated soil by train. This will minimise the number of muck-away lorries needed, reducing the impact of construction work on local roads.
Work has been carefully planned to reduce disruption as much as possible. Measures will be in place to monitor and reduce any noise. Lighting will be directed away from neighbouring areas.
To receive updates about West Midlands Rail Executive station projects, visit wmre.org.uk/wmrpnewsletter and sign up to the newsletter.
