New rail terminal adds to the region's excellent freight links

"At a time of climate pressure, the new terminal also provides an opportunity to reduce road traffic by HGVs, which is an additional important outcome from the reopening of this rail facility."

The Warwickshire economy benefits from its central location and excellent road, rail and air links. The county is about to add to this connectivity with a new local railhead now open for business to serve Bedworth and the wider Warwickshire and West Midlands area.

Warwickshire already has two large rail hubs at Hams Hall Rail Freight Terminal, near Coleshill, and Birmingham Intermodal Freight Terminal (BIFT) between the village of Dordon and Tamworth, while a third, the Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal is located next to Rugby and the new settlement at Houlton.

The new service from Bedworth is focused on aggregate materials and smaller packages, rather than the containerised logistics handled by the other local rail freight terminals. It has been developed over the last twelve months by Junction 4 Pallets, who have redeveloped the former Murco Oil Depot on Bayton Road in Exhall, and the new rail terminal is known as the J4P Bedworth Rail Terminal. The facility is on the line that runs between Nuneaton and Coventry. The freight stops are designed to take place at night, to avoid delays to the passenger line.

The new terminal is now ready for use and the first rail freight service arrived on 1st June 2023. The service was a 22 wagon, 1600 ton, stone train conveying aggregates from the Peak District in Derbyshire to Bedworth for distribution to concrete suppliers in Coventry, Warwickshire and the wider West Midlands. The movement of around 1500 tonnes of stone by rail from North Derbyshire took 70 long distance HGVs off the roads and reduced CO2 emissions by 79 percent. Emissions are 3kg per tonne by rail and 14.7kg per ton by road, according to figures data produced by the University of Hull.

Since then further services have delivered aggregates for HS2 construction in the south of the county. Discussions are also ongoing with other sectors that are interested in developing rail freight services such as with the hi-speed parcels sector to and from Scotland through Bedworth.

Junction 4 Pallets is a Doncaster-based business that moved into the Coventry & Warwickshire area in 2021, with the purchase of the former oil depot site in Exhall. Its core business is the supply and handling of wooden pallets. The company’s services include sortation, kiln drying and heat treatment, the recycling of scrapped pallets into biomass fuel, and the capability to design pallets to suit the specific needs of customers.

Junction 4 Pallets see the use of modern rail freight as a key part of their future business strategy, mindful of the responsibility we all have to reduce carbon from the freight supply chains, and the company was very keen to bring this rail terminal back into service. The pallet business is founded on sustainable, responsible principles with innovation at its heart and the company believes that the opening of the rail terminal is a continuation of that outlook.

Michael Kelly Co-owner and Director of Junction4pallets said: “I am delighted to see the first freight train arrive at our J4P Bedworth Rail Freight Terminal . This is another important step for J4P and is as a result of hard work by our dedicated team which have made this possible. We thank Tarmac and G&W Freightliner for choosing to use Bedworth - this reinforces our view that the Bedworth Rail Freight Terminal is an important and strategic site in the heart of the Midlands.”

Cllr Martin Watson, Portfolio Holder for Economy and Place at Warwickshire County Council, said: “It is great to see the rapid progress that Junction4Pallets has made in setting up in the county and getting this new rail terminal up and running. It provides another useful transport link via the county, complementing the existing rail and road transport infrastructure. At a time of climate pressure, the new terminal also provides an opportunity to reduce road traffic by HGVs, which is an additional important outcome from the reopening of this rail facility.”

Invest in Coventry & Warwickshire worked with Junction 4 Pallets to support their set-up in the local area. For more information on their services, please visit www.investcw.co.uk