THE new railway halt hoped for Wellington was set to be discussed at a council meeting.

The Somerset West and Taunton executive is due to meet tonight (Wednesday, May 20) to discuss the decision making process for the ambitious project at 6.15pm.

The plan has been in the works for years, to bring a railway halt to the town. A similar project for Cullompton runs alongside it.

It has already been revealed the project would involve the construction of a new halt-style stop, and will not include reopening the former station.

The executive committee is being asked to ‘establish clear lines’ in terms of ‘decision making and reporting’ for the project going forward.

The council report states: “Governance arrangements are important so as to establish a structure for the project, identify decision making, reporting lines, linkages to wider activities and how stakeholders will interact and participate.

“It is also important to establish a clear governance structure to drive momentum, achieve progress against milestones and manage work streams.

“Agreed governance arrangements would also assist in establishing a consensus over the approach to the project in terms of: respective roles and responsibilities for key aspects of the project, general project management, together with stakeholder engagement.”

To date, the projects have been managed by the Devon and Somerset Metro Group, but last year it was decided SWT and Mid Devon District Council (MDDC) would take on the role of project sponsors, recognising both Devon and Somerset’s county councils were unable to commit time and resources to the role.

The new project board will see the scheme through the development of the Strategic Outline Business Case.

Officers have undertaken soft-market testing to determine the approximate cost for undertaking an SOBC for a major transport intervention of this nature. The current broad estimate of costs is £150-200k.

The total capital costs of constructing a new railway station for Wellington have been estimated at around £15 million, and another £15 million for the Cullompton station.

Once the report is signed off, the two district councils will seek approval on key decisions from their cabinet/executive committees.