Beam Park residents may be forced to wait another year before they will know if a promised train station is to be built, a local MP has warned.
Jon Cruddas, MP for Dagenham and Rainham, says he has learned the Department for Transport (DfT) told the Greater London Authority (GLA) that the station issue may take another nine to 12 months to resolve.
When approached by this newspaper, neither the DfT or GLA confirmed that timeline, but his paper has seen correspondence between the GLA and Mr Cruddas corroborating his claim.
Mr Cruddas said: “This is totally unacceptable to me and more importantly unacceptable to the residents who have bought new homes on the promise of a station with a train service that would get them to Fenchurch Street station in 20 minutes.
“This government block is also having a damaging impact on local businesses and their investment plans to bring jobs to the local area.”
The station at the Rainham estate has been subject to an ongoing dispute after it emerged last year that central government had never granted support for it, despite it being an integral part of the £1billion regeneration of the area.
This led to outrage from residents who purchased homes on the understanding a station would be nearby, with one describing the situation as being “sold a dream that’s not really going to happen”.
The train station and transport links continued to be promoted on boarding two months after the lack of government support came to light, forcing an apology from one of the developers, L&Q.
Some hope was regained earlier this year, however, when the minister for transport, Wendy Morton, wrote to ex-Havering Council leader Damian White indicating a new station had not been ruled out.
Mr Cruddas said he has now written to the DfT, reiterating that people bought homes on the premise of a station being built and requesting it speeds up its work.
A spokesperson for the mayor of London said: “City Hall continues to engage with the DfT to find a way forward for this important project.
"Additional technical work has been undertaken by City Hall and presented to DfT.
“Further meetings are scheduled between the parties for later this summer.”
A spokesperson for the DfT said there are no updates it can share at this time.
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