Save our Station!

23rd November2009

Cllr Jillian Creasy's speech to the lobby of the Planning Board.

I was here on Saturday with teachers, parents, pupils and supporters of Abbeydale Grange School. On Saturday, we were shouting "Save our School"
Today we are shouting "Save our station"
Great to see so many on Saturday and today - it shows that Sheffielders care about their communities and their city and want the Council to do the same.

The Planning Board is being asked to decide whether the proposed gates will affect the listed building status of our historic railway station.

Seems strange that it is a minor legal requirement, a matter of aesthetics, which has finally allowed Councillors to have a say in what happens - but privatisation and central government guidelines for the private companies running our railways have stripped the Council any other power in this.

Appearance and history are important, but there are wider issues at stake.

We want a city which is .. democratic ...fair and accessible for all
..environmentally friendly

DEMOCRACY means having a say about public buildings. EMT do not own the station, it belongs to us!

FAIRNESS means easy access to the city for local people, pedestrians and the disabled, not just car drivers

BEING GREEN means supporting pedestrians, cyclists, users of public transport - trams, trains, buses from the nearby interchange

This campaign is about standing up for our city and our communities against the threats of privatisation and central government diktat.

So I say with you - Save our Station!

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