DO your bit to fight the rail freight plan and click on the link to the right to access a petition fighting against the scheme.

Pressure group STRiFE (Stop The Rail Freight Exchange) has up an online petition persuading the county council not to sell or lease the former Radlett Airfield to rail freight developers Helioslough following the decision by Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Eric Pickles to effectively grant planning permission just before Christmas.

The Herts Advertiser wants to encourage as many people as possible to sign, so we’ve made it easy and added the link on the right directly from our website to the petition.

And while legal opinion received by STRiFE suggests there might be a case for a Judicial Review over a decision made by Mr Pickles a week prior to that announcement, the campaigners’ priority is to hit their 10,000 signature target on the online petition and trigger a debate at County Hall.

The county council owns the former Radlett Airfield in Park Street and if they were to refuse to sell or lease the site to Helioslough, the scheme for a major terminus and five massive warehouses could not go ahead.

Cathy Bolshaw of STRiFE explained that the petition was urging the county council to maintain its current position and refuse to sell or lease the land.

10,000 signatures would mean a debate being held at County Hall into the county council’s next step and STRiFE is aiming to present it on February 26.

The county council has always said it would have to consider the potential benefits to Herts as a whole from selling the site rather than just the implications for the St Albans and Hertsmere districts.