NPPF (2026) · Well-connected stations
Is Thurston a well-connected station under the new NPPF?
The short answer
No, not on the current data: the weekday timetable shows about 2.3 trains an hour, with about 1 an hour in its busiest direction, below the 4 an hour overall (or 2 in one direction) the test asks for, and its Bury St Edmunds travel to work area ranks 83 by economic output, outside the top 80 the test requires. So the minimum density rule and the station-based routes to permission do not apply within 800 metres of Thurston. One caveat: the Framework also counts a station with a reasonable prospect of reaching the frequency through planned upgrades or an operator agreement, which a timetable cannot show.
Assess your own site against the full Framework →
~2/hr
average daytime service, weekday timetable
~1/hr
busiest single direction
none
no station density floor applies
The frequency limb
Annex B asks for at least 4 trains an hour overall, or 2 an hour in any one direction, throughout the weekday daytime. Thurston averages about 2.3 an hour; its quietest daytime hour sees 2.
Trains calling per hour, 07:00 to 19:00 · weekday timetable, 2026-09-01 sample
Hourly trains calling at Thurston from 07:00: 3, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3.
The travel to work area limb
Thurston sits in the Bury St Edmunds travel to work area, ranked 83 by economic output (about £5.3bn of gross value added, ONS 2023) — outside the top 80 the test requires, so this limb fails whatever the timetable shows. The Framework fixes the 2023 rankings until the day after the 2028 figures are published, so this half of the test will not move before then.
What not passing means within 800 metres
- No station density floor: policy L3(2)(c)’s minimum of 35 or 45 homes per hectare does not bite here, so density is set by the usual local considerations. How the density rule works
- No station route outside settlements: policy S5(1)(h) does not apply, so land beyond a settlement boundary needs one of the other listed routes. The routes outside settlements
- No station route in the Green Belt: policies GB7(1)(h) and GB2(4) do not apply here, though the grey belt and other Green Belt changes still might. How Green Belt policy changed
Nearby well-connected stations
Own land near Thurston? The station rule doesn't apply here — but another route might.
The 800 metre station rule is only one of the Framework's routes to permission, and it changed alongside many others in August 2026. Our free assessment reads your exact boundary against the full Framework: settlement position, Green Belt status, flood risk, heritage and the rest.
Service frequencies from the national rail weekday timetable, 2026-09-01 sample; timetables change, so check the current one before relying on this in an application. The 800 metre circle is straight line distance; the Framework applies around a 10 minute actual walk where barriers exist. See Thurston on the full stations map
Reflects the National Planning Policy Framework (2026), published 17 August 2026. This page last reviewed 26 August 2026. Read the framework.