Exploring the expansive SEGRO Logistics Park in Radlett, from infrastructure milestones to community engagement and environmental considerations.
A court rejected an appeal against the park. This hurt the “Save the Freight Campaign.” Protesters questioned the project’s legitimacy. Local people will live with this reality. The site is huge. I wanted to understand the development.
I ate lunch with Charles Blake from SEGRO. We talked about the logistics park. He stressed “transparency” and “communication.” These are key for moving forward. He said they will be open with the community. They will talk to people as the project progresses.
The park will have warehouses and create jobs. It will also improve green spaces. It helps move goods efficiently by rail. The project reached its first milestone. They built an underbridge for the Midland Mainline. Trains run between London and Bedford.
The work happened over Christmas. They closed the railway for nine days. They also upgraded lines and replaced a bridge. Andy Latimer, from Network Rail, described the hard work. They installed the bridge over Christmas. Andy joked he missed Christmas dinner.
They cut out part of the track. Then, they removed lots of material. They pushed a concrete structure into place slowly. Finally, they rebuilt the ground and track. The logistics park will have warehouse space.
It will also have woodlands. There will be trails for walking and riding. These trails connect to existing routes. The project is early in development. I saw how big it is. They moved newts carefully. SEGRO staff understood the local area.
The size of the site surprised me. Charles said it’s “hidden in plain sight.” He also spoke about changing a roundabout. They want to improve access to the park. The changes should make the road safer.
People have wanted this for years. They are building a new road from Watling Street. This connects the park to the A414. The infrastructure could be done next year.
