County council refuse to reveal fee to be paid to Kenilworth Station operators to cover losses

The one off fee to be paid to West Midlands Railway has not been revealed by Warwickshire County Council

An earlier Freedom of Information request made by Kenilworth resident Maurice Miller showed the council originally agreed to underwrite any losses made by West Midlands Railway, who will run the station when it opens.

The council's joint managing director, Monica Fogarty, said this information was no longer correct, and said a one-off payment will instead be made by the council.

But when asked for clarification on what size of the payment would be, the council said it could not reveal the figure and that the final amount was still being negotiated.

A spokesman for Warwickshire County Council said: "At the moment, that's commercially sensitive information. It would compromise our position."

The news comes after county council leader Cllr Izzi Seccombe announced the creation of a 'Task and Finish Group' at a council meeting yesterday (Tuesday March 20) to investigate why the project has been delayed so many times.

An opening date for the station has still not been announced.

However, the council said it has now submitted key information to the rail regulator, who will then confirm when services can start running.

Ms Fogarty said: “We are nearly there. I know it has been frustrating for residents who are looking forward to using the station. We would like to thank everyone for their patience.”