Transport Minister Derek Twigg has officially opened one of the region’s largest jam-busting schemes at Stourbridge Junction rail station.

Cutting the ribbon this morning, the Minister with responsibility for rail said he was delighted to underline the importance of projects like this in combating congestion.

"Park and ride is important in encouraging people to use the trains," he said.  "It is about giving people as many journey options as possible and making the public transport option an attractive one."

The new park and ride facility is the latest addition to a Centro-PTA programme which is calculated to take more than 2½ million car journeys a year off the West Midlands’ congested roads.

Centro encourages public transport use by providing free, secure parking for rail commuters, who then benefit from a frequent train service to Birmingham.  Already one in five of the city’s rush hour commuters travel by train and around half of those have opted to leave a car behind.

“The growing number of park and ride spaces are proving very popular with local people and can make a significant contribution towards tackling the congestion that could make our lives a misery in the West Midlands,” says Cllr Gary Clarke, chairman of the Passenger Transport Authority, which sets policy for Centro.

This latest £2.7million investment by Centro-PTA doubles the size of the existing facility at Stourbridge Junction by adding 400 new spaces off Rufford Road.  These are linked to the station by a new footbridge.

The previous car park was regularly over-subscribed, leading to frustration for users and parking problems on nearby streets.  Following the expansion there are now spaces available throughout the day, encouraging people in the Stourbridge area to park and ride for the regular off-peak rail services as well.