Brabazon. Once the name of a revolutionary aeroplane, and an emblem of British engineering ambition. Now it belongs to a new town near Bristol, one of seven sites in the Government’s plan to build the next generation of communities, each expected to deliver between 10,000 and 40,000 homes.

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But if this ambition is judged only by the number of front doors it delivers, we are not thinking big enough. Housing is essential, but it is only the beginning.

New towns should be engines of regional growth, places that widen access to jobs, education and culture, and become destinations in their own right. That only happens when they are properly connected. Rail has long proved itself one of the most effective ways to make that possible.

Brabazon shows what a more ambitious model can look like. This is not simply a housing scheme on the edge of Bristol. It is a major mixed-use redevelopment on more than 400 acres of brownfield land, with permission for 6,500 homes, thousands of square metres of office and retail space, and the potential to support more than 30,000 jobs.

Crucially, it also has a new rail station at its heart. Brabazon station, now under construction, is not a nice extra added at the end. It is central to making the wider vision work. Progress is already under way, with homes delivered and commercial space coming forward. But the bigger point is what rail helps unlock more. Because the station has been built into the plan from the outset, Brabazon has a far stronger chance of becoming a connected, economically and socially vibrant community, not just a large housing development.

In places like Brabazon, rail does more than help people get in and out. It changes the socio-economics of a place. Stations become more than transport assets. They act as anchors for investment, regeneration, jobs and productivity, bringing businesses, workers and opportunity closer together. They make growth possible, not just promised.

Independent modelling shows just how meaningful that impact can be, especially for smaller regional economies and communities across the UK. It forecasts that new and proposed regional train stations could support more than 13,500 permanent jobs and generate just over £1 billion a year by 2036.

And the value goes beyond economics alone. Rail helps reduce congestion, widens access to work and education, and creates social benefits through tourism, leisure and culture. 

Done properly, station-led development can unlock jobs, strengthen communities and help drive the UK’s economic and social future. Realising that potential will require continued investment, not only in the railway itself, but in the places around it. It will also require meaningful not tokenistic collaboration - across local and national government, private sector and community groups.

Brabazon once stood for a leap in engineering ambition, a belief that infrastructure could redefine what was possible. Today’s new towns should embrace that same spirit, using rail not as an afterthought, but as the backbone of prosperous communities.

Mark Hopwood is the Managing Director of Great Western Rail.

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