Three new shelters have arrived at Whittlesea and Manea rail stops as part of a large-scale investment programme into Fenland’s train stations.

The shelters are one of the many upgrades through the £9.5 million investment by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority into Fenland’s railways.

As part of the Fenland Stations Regeneration Project, driven by Fenland District Council on behalf of the Hereward Community Rail Partnership, three new shelters were installed, with one at Manea and two at Whittlesea.

Cllr Chris Seaton, Fenland District Council’s portfolio holder for transport, said: “The response from the public to our consultation has been fantastic and it’s wonderful to see so many individuals getting involved.

“We hope that these new station facilities will encourage more people to experience the scenic Hereward Line through Fenland.”

The design of the station shelters was chosen by the public as part of a consultation in August 2019.

Respondents had the choice between modular rail shelters crafted from durable and renewable accoya wood, an anti-vandal stainless steel structure or a similar stainless steel and aluminium shelter.

The general public opted for the natural accoya wood shelters provided by Natural Shelter, which are low carbon sustainable structures and will be 100% recyclable when they come to the end of their service lives.

Mayor James Palmer of the Combined Authority said: “This is just the start of the series of improvements going ahead in several towns as part of our Fenland Stations Regeneration Project.

“While those other improvements are on the way, I won’t relax the pressure for more train services, so travellers have more trains to wait for in these excellent new shelters.”

The project management was undertaken by Greater Anglia in partnership with their suppliers Natural Shelters and RCU Solutions.

Following a formal handover between the project team and the Greater Anglia operational team, Greater Anglia has formally adopted the shelters as their asset.

Simone Bailey, Greater Anglia’s asset management director, said: “We’re very grateful to Fenland District Council and the Hereward Line Community Rail Partnership for their support in securing funding for upgrades to Fenland stations, and for their work with the community to ensure that the new shelters would meet the needs and expectations of local people.”