AN extra £1.8 million funding for the planned 'state of the art' Warrington West railway station has been approved by council chiefs.

The executive board met to discuss the project in the Town Hall chamber on Monday and was quick to allocate additional resources to it.

The Chapelford scheme, which will be constructed on land around San Diego Drive, has been hit by a series of setbacks since it was promised in 2002.

Warrington West was initially set to cost £12.66 million.

But at the start of the month, after the Warrington Guardian revealed the anticipated costs had risen above estimates made by Network Rail, which will be managing the project, the executive board was forced to consider committing a further £1.8 million.

However, Cllr Hans Mundry, portfolio holder for highways, transportation and public realm, along with council leader Terry O'Neill, expects every penny spent to be worth it.

"If anyone has seen the plans it is clearly going to be a state of the art development and it shows the ambitions the town has," said Cllr Mundry.

"Warrington is very successful in acquiring funding. It is putting us right up there in the game."

Cllr O'Neill added: "We have a history of delivering schemes. The cost-benefit ratio of this development is enormous and it is something we should be proud of."

After completion, and once the site opens by early 2019, it will be serviced by a 260-space car park.

Arriva Rail North was recently awarded the franchise for the station and has committed to having a minimum of three trains stopping per hour in a move expected to dramatically reduce congestion in Warrington and on the surrounding motorway networks.

It is anticipated the scheme will support more than 1,600 new homes due to be built over the next 10 years at Omega, Lingley Mere and adjacent development sites, as well as 16,000 new and existing jobs.

The development is also expected to deliver £522.6 million gross value to the north west Warrington area – generating £4.72 for every £1 spent.

Site surveys and the design process at the land will run from next month, with work on phase one to begin early next year, while phase two, including the construction of the station facilities and platforms, is expected to begin six months thereafter.

Following discussions the executive board unanimously backed Balfour Beatty to become the 'preferred delivery partner' to start pre-construction activity at an approximate cost of £1.8 million.

Members also approved a recommendation for the council to enter into 'formal agreements' with Network Rail in order for the scheme design to be accepted so it can meet the delivery programme – it is set to cost £600,000.

A phase two public consultation period is set to be held towards the end of this year.