THE possibility of reopening Boscombe Railway Station is to be investigated as part of plans to regenerate the area.

Council leaders agreed to draw up a development brief for vacant land between North Road and the railway bridge in Ashley Road.

This will state how the council would like to see the site developed and include a reference to the possibility of reopening Boscombe station.

Developers will be invited to submit ideas for the land.

It's not the first time Bournemouth council has tried to do something with this site - council planners started preparing a development brief some time ago but this never progressed.

Boscombe Railway Station opened in 1897, serving the former Royal Victoria Hospital, the centre of Boscombe and the Dean Court stadium.

However, because of its close proximity to Pokesdown Station, closure was recommended in the Beeching Report of 1963.

Boscombe West councillor Phil Stanley-Watts, who has long been calling for investment in this part of Boscombe, urged the council to make the development brief a top priority.

"The area is crying out for regeneration and investment," he said. "I hope that it is developed as soon as possible, but developed in an environmentally friendly way.

"It's important that we don't just end up with a concrete block but that we have green areas as well.

"That site is part of the area's heritage because it accommodated the railway station, a coal yard and terraced railway worker cottages.

"There have been a lot of problems with squatters and people dumping rubbish there and it now looks a mess. What is needed is investment to make it come alive again. It should be an urgent priority."